A Beaufort man has been convicted of murder in connection with the 2017 strangulation death of his wife.

Dale Eugene King, 55, was found guilty Wednesday, Dec. 11 of murdering Veronica King, who was 51 when she was killed May 15, 2017.

After the General Sessions Court jury of seven women and five men delivered their verdict, Dale King was sentenced to 35 years in prison.

“Veronica King’s death is both tragic and cautionary,” said Hunter Swanson, who prosecuted the case and leads the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s Office Special Victims Unit. “There was a history of alcohol and physical abuse in this relationship, and it turned deadly.

“Dale King killed his wife with his bare hands, and Veronica died nude and afraid, in her most vulnerable state.”

Beaufort Police were first called to the motel on Boundary Street where the Kings lived and worked in March 2017, after receiving a report of a domestic disturbance from a relative. Dale King denied any dispute between he and his wife, however, authorities noticed marks on Veronica King’s face. A family member who was visiting the couple reported that the Kings had been drinking alcohol and arguing much of the day. The family member also said that, while she was in the bathroom of the Kings’ room, she heard a physical altercation between them.

Officers photographed Veronica King’s injuries and charged Dale King with third-degree domestic violence.

He was out on bond when authorities were again called to their motel room May 15, 2017. That morning, Dale King claimed he awoke to find his wife dead on their couch. He initially denied harming his wife, but later admitted he struck her. A medical examiner at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston determined Veronica King suffered blunt-force trauma on her head, an abrasion near her tailbone and was strangled to death.

Swanson called 11 witnesses during the two-day trial, including the medical examiner and Beaufort Police Department officers.

Circuit Court Judge Edgar Dickson handed down the sentence.