A US man allegedly killed his wife in 2019 and then used her life insurance payout to buy a life-sized sex doll worth nearly USD 2,000.

The man was identified as Colby Trickle and he allegedly killed his wife in 2019.

After murdering her, Colby Trickle called 911 and told the operator that his 26-year-old wife Kristen Trickle had shot herself in their Kansas home.

Sergeant Brandon Hauptman from the Hays Police Department was the responding officer and after speaking with Colby Trickle, and looking at the scene, he was suspicious, reported CBS News.

Three days later,  coroner Dr. Lyle Noordhoek ruled that Kristen Trickle committed suicide which freed Colby Trickle to move ahead in his life.

However, investigators kept working further on the case.

Colby Trickle, who was in the Army Reserve, cashed in on two life insurance policies for his wife totaling more than $120,000, reported CBS News.

Detective Joshua "JB" Burkholder tells "48 Hours" correspondent Erin Moriarty as quoted by CBS News, "There's a mourning process that I think everyone needs to go through — should go through when a loved one dies —  and to have him ordering this type of doll just months after his wife's death was concerning."

When Kristen Trickle's 's aunt, Delynn Rice, heard about the doll, she felt 'appaled'.

She told CBS News: "I was just appalled that he would use Kristen's life insurance money for a sex doll. It just was like he bought a replacement of her with her money."

According to reports, apart from buying a sex doll, Colby Trickle also spent thousands of dollars on video games, paying off debts, and buying music equipment in hopes of becoming a performer.

On July 14, 2021, 21 months after Kristen Trickle's death, Colby Trickle was charged with murder in the first degree and interfering with law enforcement, reported CBS News.

In November 2023, more than four years after Kristen Trickle died, her husband was sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole for 50 years.