The trial of Nikki Sue Melissa Entzel, a 40-year-old Bismarck woman, has been delayed for the fifth time. She is accused of plotting to kill her husband, Chad Entzel, in a scheme to cash in on life insurance funds. Chad Entzel was found dead in a Bismarck home on Jan. 2, 2020.
Nikki Entzel is charged with conspiracy to commit murder, conspiracy to commit arson, and conspiracy to tamper with evidence. Authorities say she tried to start two fires in the home with Chad Entzel's body inside to burn any physical evidence linking her to the slaying.
Nikki Entzel's 10-day trial was set to start Monday, Feb. 28, in Bismarck. However, her attorney, Justin Balzer, filed a motion to withdraw as her counsel. During a pretrial conference over Zoom, Balzer said there's been a "breakdown in the attorney-client relationship ... which I believe leaves me no option but to withdraw." The new trial start date is now scheduled for Sept. 26, according to court filings.
Nikki Entzel was arrested along with Earl Howard, who investigators say was in a romantic relationship with Nikki Entzel. The alleged motive for Chad Entzel's killing, according to investigators, involved a love triangle and plans to receive his life insurance funds, of which Nikki Entzel was a beneficiary.
A representation of a crime scene investigation.
Read also: The Life of Chad Everett Harris
The Investigation and Evidence
Investigators initially thought Chad Entzel's death was self-inflicted. However, several factors pushed the investigation in another direction, according to a Burleigh County sheriff deputy.
Chad Entzel, 42, was shot twice with a shotgun in the Entzel home and died of his wounds in the bedroom, according to Dr.
HORRIFYING CASE OF NAGPUR DAKHOLE FAMILY | FINTALE | TRUE CRIME DOCUMENTARY
The nature of some of the communication showed the two had a romantic relationship months before Chad Entzel’s death, the deputy said. Jurors saw a YouTube video shared between Howard and Nikki Entzel that showed a woman yelling at her husband, then relenting when she saw the new car he got her for Christmas. The car exploded when she started it. Though fictitious, the sharing of the video by the two was “significant” because of the timing, Thompson said.
Howard’s bank statement showed he’d purchased a gas welding torch kit on Dec. 30. A kit in the garage of the home was overlooked by investigators in January, Thompson said, but noticed later when they reviewed photos of the home. The tanks were empty when investigators got a search warrant and seized the kit in February. Witnesses testified that Howard purchased the kit, and one expert said a dog trained to detect fire accelerants noted the presence on the bed next to Chad Entzel’s body.
Nikki Entzel told Michell Mundy that she and Chad no longer shared a bedroom and that she had plans to divorce him and move to Texas with Howard. In one text string Mundy asks Nikki Entzel if it’s “just you and the boys” who moved into the home. Nikki responded “I wish he is with.”
Read also: "Married to Evil": Chad Graves
Jurors saw time-stamped surveillance camera video of a man and woman entering and leaving a Bismarck hotel on the day authorities say the two carried out a plan to kill Chad Entzel. Surveillance video also showed Nikki Entzel and Howard at the Entzel home northeast of the city in the hours leading up to Chad Entzel’s death, according to trial testimony. Investigators maintain Nikki Entzel thought she had disabled the video surveillance at the home, but that her efforts had failed.
Emergency workers found Chad Entzel’s body on Jan. 2, 2020, when they responded to a call of a house fire. A portion of a cigarette package at the homicide scene matched the brand found in Howard’s pickup, and was a possible ignition source for a furnace fire, according to state Bureau of Criminal Investigation Special Agent Michael Mees. Another fire was in the bedroom where the body was found.
Burleigh County State’s Attorney Julie Lawyer said Nikki Entzel inquired with an insurance company about widow benefits and claims to renter and life insurance policies. Nikki Entzel inquired about life insurance benefits through her husband’s employer the day after his body was found, Interstate Power Co. benefits specialist Heather Schwartz testified.
Jurors watched an hourslong videotaped interview that then-Deputy Burleigh County Sheriff Aaron Silbernagel and state Bureau of Criminal Investigation Special Agent Joe Arenz conducted with Nikki Entzel in January 2020. The investigators bit-by-bit revealed information to her they said proved she was lying, and the back and forth ended with Entzel telling them she felt a sort of relief that her husband was dead. She also maintained that Howard shot and killed her husband.
Key Figures in the Case
Here's a summary of the key individuals involved in the case:
Read also: Vallow-Daybell Trial: Key Evidence
| Name | Role |
|---|---|
| Nikki Sue Melissa Entzel | Accused of conspiracy to commit murder, arson, and evidence tampering |
| Chad Entzel | Victim, found dead in his Bismarck home |
| Earl Howard | Co-conspirator, pleaded guilty and sentenced to 25 years in prison |
Nikki Entzel could face life in prison if convicted.