Associated Press

DEVILS LAKE - The man charged in the deaths of a Wells County couple whose bodies were found in their burned home had talked about killing someone and using fire to cover up a crime, another man and his wife testified Thursday.

Scott McLawhorn said Aron Nichols told him, "if you get things hot enough, you can cover up evidence pretty well."

McLawhorn and his wife, Melisa, testified at the trial of Nichols and Nichols' fiancee, Tamara Sorenson, who are charged in the deaths of Donald Willey, 70, and his wife, Alice, 67, at their rural Sykeston home last April. Nichols is charged with murder and Sorenson is charged with being an accomplice.

Melisa McLawhorn said Nichols and her husband discussed three scenarios for killing a man, including severing brake lines, attacking a man behind a bar, or "pouring gasoline over the guy and gasing the house."

She said Scott McLawhorn recommended using a slow burning fuse so Nichols would not burn himself.

Scott McLawhorn said he could not recall the first two scenarios but said Nichols did talk about using fire to cover up a crime. McLawhorn said he considered the situation to be hypothetical but still said no when Nichols asked him to help.

Nichols is accused of shooting the Willeys and setting their home on fire to cover up the crime.