AUSTIN, Texas — Gavin Roberts, the man who confessed to killing Justin Haden at Haden's apartment in The Domain in fall 2022, will serve 50 years in prison for the crime after entering a plea deal.
Jury selection was scheduled to begin on Monday, Feb. 5, for Roberts' murder trial. Instead, Roberts entered a plea bargain to serve 50 years. An evidence tampering charge against him has been dismissed.
Roberts will serve his time in the Texas State Penitentiary at Huntsville.
What happened?
According to court documents, 34-year-old Justin Haden was last seen entering his apartment complex, Griffis at The Domain, at around 1:40 a.m. on Nov. 1, 2022. He was accompanied by another man, later identified as 26-year-old Roberts.
Just after 3 p.m. on Nov. 1, Roberts was seen leaving Haden's apartment, wearing a medical mask and struggling to carry bags and bins.
On Nov. 4, Haden's attorney called the Austin Police Department (APD) for a welfare check after not hearing from him. When police arrived at Haden's apartment, officers saw what they believed were wine stains on the wall next to a bed.
On Nov. 7, Haden's father officially reported him missing. Two days later, a private investigator hired by Haden's family went to his apartment and found that the stains police saw on the wall were blood and there were more stains on the bed.
The investigator informed APD of his findings and later that night, police agreed: the stains were blood.
On Nov. 10, APD executed a search warrant to gather evidence and security video, which allowed them to identify Roberts as the man seen leaving Haden's apartment.
Eight days later, Roberts contacted APD after seeing himself on the news. He told police he was in Colorado, and police issued an arrest warrant for him that day.
Roberts told police he buried Haden's body near Interstate 35 in Williamson County before driving to Colorado. On Nov. 23, U.S. Marshals arrested Roberts in Denver.
Roberts appeared in court back in September 2023. At the time, he pleaded not guilty to charges of murder and tampering with a corpse.
KVUE reached out to Haden's father for a comment following his plea deal. He didn't have one. KVUE also reached out to Roberts' attorneys, but we have not heard back.
Justin Haden's family members are expected to address Roberts and the court on Tuesday morning.