INSTANT KARMA: Man dies of heart attack while trying to bury strangled girlfriend in back yard

A South Carolina man seems to have become the victim of his own bad karma when he suffered a fatal heart attack while trying to bury the body of his girlfriend, whom he had strangled to death, Edgefield County officials report.

Deputies responding to "a call of an unresponsive man lying in his yard" discovered the body of Joseph Anthony McKinnon, 60, lying dead with "no signs of trauma and natural causes were suspected." However, a second body located "in a freshly dug pit" turned out to be McKinnon's girlfriend, Patricia Ruth Dent, 65, who appeared to have died by "foul play," according to a statement from Edgefield County Sheriff Jody Rowland and Edgefield County Coroner David Burnett.

Autopsies confirmed McKinnon's cause of death was "a cardiac event," while Dent was determined to have "died by strangulation."

"Evidence gathered at the scene, along with statements from witnesses, aided investigators to build a timeline, leading us to believe that Mr. McKinnon attacked Ms. Dent while inside their home," officials reported.

"Mr. McKinnon then bound her and wrapped her in trash bags before putting her in the previously dug pit. The pit was then partially filled in by Mr. McKinnon. While covering the pit, Mr. McKinnon had the cardiac event, causing his death."