Convicted felon claims Steven Avery confessed to him about murdering Teresa Halbach

FOX VALLEY, Wis. (WBAY) – A Marinette man, serving a life sentence for killing his wife, claims Steven Avery confessed to murdering Teresa Halbach when the two became friendly in prison. The claims are in a letter posted on the Rockford Advocate Website.

Steven Avery and his nephew, Brendan Dassey, were both convicted in 2007 for the 2005 murder of Teresa Halbach. The case gained international attention after the Netflix release of “Making a Murderer” in late 2015. Both men are appealing their convictions with Dassey’s case set to be heard in front of the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals later this month.

In a letter dated August 25, 2016, convicted felon Joseph Evans, claims Steven Avery told him he did in fact kill Teresa Halbach saying “he would have gotten away with it, if his idiot nephew of his Brendan would not have spoken to the police like he told him not to…”

Evans says he and Avery struck up a friendship while both were serving their sentences at Wisconsin Secured Prison Facility located in Boscobel. Online Department of Corrections records show Evans and Avery were both housed at the Southwestern Wisconsin prison back in 2010 when Evans says these conversations took place.

According to Evans, he met Avery while Avery was a recreation aide at the prison in Boscobel. The Department of Corrections confirms Avery was a recreation worker at the prison for two years starting in April of 2010.

Evan details, in his letter, how Avery claims he lured Halbach into his trailer, forcing her into his bedroom with a knife at her throat. He writes Avery told him he tied Halbach up with a long-sleeved shirt, assaulted and killed her before his nephew, Brendan Dassey, even came over to his house. Avery told Evans Dassey helped him put Halbach’s body in the burn pit.

He also told Evans, according to the letter, to never speak of their conversations or tell anyone anything and when he got out of prison and sued for wrongful conviction he would help Evans out.

Then, four years later, in March of 2014, Evan writes and online records confirm, he and Avery were transferred on the same day to Waupun Correctional. While at Waupun, Evans writes he and Avery stopped talking about Avery’s case because Avery’s “newly appointed attorney doesn’t want him talking to anyone about his case, without her being there.”

A month after Evans wrote the letter, records show he was transferred back to the prison is Boscobel. The DOC says Evans requested the transfer.

Law enforcement says letters like the one Evans wrote, claiming Avery has confessed to murder, have come in over the years. The letters are always turned over to the State Attorney General’s Office and investigations are conducted. The Attorney General’s office says it has no comment on those investigations. And Avery’s attorney, Kathleen Zellner, did not respond to requests for comment.