Man Testifies Girlfriend Died Accidentally During Sex

ALLENTOWN, Pa. (AP) — A man accused of having strangled his girlfriend with a TV electrical cord has testified that the victim died accidentally during sex.

Twenty-six-year-old Anthony Heath is representing himself on Lehigh County charges of homicide, abuse of a corpse and related counts in the January 2014 death of 35-year-old Angela Steigerwalt of Tamaqua.

Heath took the stand Monday and said Steigerwalt's death was an accident during what he called "role playing," and he never meant to kill her.

He said he panicked after she died, burned the body in neighboring Carbon County and fled to North Carolina.

Heath acknowledged that he lied to police when he said earlier that he "blacked out" and found the victim dead. He said he was trying to follow Steigerwalt's instructions not to "kiss and tell."