Sentencing date set for Canadian man who admitted to North Dakota murder

(Bismarck, ND) -- January 21st is the sentencing date for a Canadian man who admitted to killing a Bismarck resident.

43-year-old Earl Howard is expected to receive 25-years in prison after admitting to murder, arson, and tampering with evidence.

His co-defendant, 40-year-old Nikkisue Entzel, has not been sentenced at this time.

Howard was arrested in January of 2020, after investigators say he plotted with Nikkisue Entzel to plot the death of her husband, 42-year-old Chad Entzel. Investigators accused Howard of starting a house fire in rural Bismarck, leaving the body of Chad inside. Howard turned himself in to police on the Blue Water Bridge, which connects the state of Michigan to Ontario, Canada.

Howard's trial was held inside the North Dakota Capital.