Bond was set at $250,000 cash Wednesday for a 19-year-old Cheyenne man accused of murdering his significant other.

Charles Rees Karn made his initial appearance in Laramie County Circuit Court on a charge of first-degree murder.

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According to Cheyenne Police Department spokeswoman Alex Farkas, officers were dispatched to a 911 hang-up call at a camper near the 4700 block of Cactus Way at about 12:19 a.m. on Thursday, June 15.

Officers arrived to find Karn's significant other, 19-year-old Cheyenne woman Phoenix Cerenil, unresponsive with apparent signs of strangulation.

According to a booking sheet, police determined that Karn had pushed Cerenil causing her to strike her head on a table near the bed and lose consciousness.

Cerenil was taken by ambulance to Cheyenne Regional Medical Center, where she died Saturday afternoon.

Karn was arrested and charged Friday with aggravated assault, strangulation of a household member, and domestic battery, but the Laramie County District Attorney's Office on Tuesday afternoon amended those charges to include first-degree murder.

Karn's preliminary hearing is scheduled for this Friday, June 23, at 10:30 a.m.

For more information about this case, check out our earlier posts:

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