The man who strangled his elderly roommate to death has been sentenced to life in prison. Alex Hanson (dob 11/2/89) will be eligible for parole after 22 years, as he was also given an additional 2–5-year sentence for a deadly weapon enhancement.
Hanson called 9-1-1 on September 18, 2023 to report that 62-year-old Jeffrey Falkenstein was dead in their home. During the call, Hanson told the dispatcher that “I got into it with this guy last night” and that the victim had died. The county dispatcher transferred the call to the Sheriff’s Office, where again Hanson told the operator that Falkenstein was dead in their home. In the second call, the defendant also said that he knew what had happened and that the two had gotten into an argument about the victim’s dating life.
Detectives learned that the two men had been roommates for the last six months and had not gotten along, with the defendant saying that they would bicker and fight often. The morning after the murder, the defendant called his mother and told her, “I think I might’ve killed somebody” and that “I freaked out.” Hanson’s mother pushed him to call the police, which is when law enforcement became involved.
Deputy District Attorney Nate MacLellan argued for 22 years to life in prison at sentencing, citing that the only person who truly knows what happened that night is Hanson. He chose not to speak to detectives, or in court, and now the family will never know why they lost their son, brother, nephew, uncle, father and most importantly, grandfather. They will only know that Hanson referred to Falkenstein as if he were a swatted fly, and that he only had terrible things to say about him. For that, DDA MacLellan argued that the defendant deserves the sentence of life in prison. The Honorable Kathleen Sigurdson presided and imposed the life sentence.
