Denver man sentenced to five years for hiding lover’s body, spending their Social Security money

Not only did this guy live in a disgusting situation, he’s now going to jail for years because of it…

A Lakewood man who lived with the corpse of a former lover for nearly two years so he could continue spending the dead man’s Social Security money was sentenced this week to five years in prison.

James Agnew, 56, pleaded guilty to tampering with a deceased human body and identity theft, both felonies, in Jefferson County District Court, according to court records.

Prosecutors dismissed five additional felony charges — abuse of a corpse, theft, attempted theft, a second identity theft count and unauthorized use of a financial device — as part of a plea deal.

Agnew and his wife, Suzanne Agnew, 58, were arrested in July 2025 after the brother of 64-year-old James Frances O’Neill requested a welfare check at the couple’s apartment in the 3400 block of South Ammons Street.

During the welfare check, James Agnew allegedly posed as O’Neill, telling officers he wanted no contact with O’Neill’s family. O’Neill’s brother later viewed body camera footage and told police the man in the video was not his brother.

When officers returned with a search warrant on July 3, they found O’Neill’s body beneath a deflated air mattress inside the apartment. Investigators determined the body had been there since December 2023.

Suzanne Agnew told detectives the three had been in an “intimate,” three-way relationship for years. She said she discovered O’Neill dead one morning and did not call police because she was not ready to “give him up,” according to the arrest affidavit.

The couple later covered O’Neill’s body with an air mattress after some of Suzanne Agnew’s chihuahuas began “chewing” on the remains, according to the affidavit.

James Agnew told investigators that O’Neill’s Social Security benefits “were definitely a consideration” when they decided not to report the death. Police said the couple spent more than $17,000 using O’Neill’s debit card and that someone forged his signature on a car title after his death.

Neither James nor Suzanne Agnew has been charged in connection with O’Neill’s death. James Agnew told police he believed O’Neill died from drug use.

Suzanne Agnew’s case remains pending. She pleaded not guilty on Monday and is set to appear in court May 26.