MOUNT PLEASANT, Iowa (AP) — A June 25 hearing is scheduled for a judge to rule on whether a man killed his wife, who disappeared nearly 18 years ago in southeast Iowa. Closing arguments were held Monday in Henry County District Court in the nonjury trial of 58-year-old Michael Syperda. He was charged in December with first-degree murder in the disappearance of Elizabeth Syperda.

She was 22 when she disappeared in July 2000 in Mount Pleasant. Her body was never found. Court records say the couple had been estranged before her disappearance, because she was leaving him for a woman.
Prosecutors say Michael Syperda threatened and stalked his wife. His attorney says there is no evidence linking him to her disappearance or death, if indeed she’s been killed.

Michael Syperda didn’t testify at the trial.