Last year, a man killed, decapitated, and dismembered another man in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Now, Mathew J. Cramer, 22, has been given life in prison.
On April 23, 2021, Shane Van Nguyen, 55, was killed. Afterwards, a jury found Cramer guilty of murder, abuse of a corpse, and resisting law enforcement.
“His murder took away my husband. His murder took away the father of my two sons,” expressed Don Nguyen during a victim impact statement.
At the trial, it was noted that Cramer was homeless and was residing in a storage unit. Nguyen noticed Cramer walking, offered him a ride, took him to the storage unit, and the two had sex, the defendant said. Cramer added that he was a victim of a sexual predator and responded in a panic.
Detectives say that Cramer slammed Nguyen’s head into the ground and struck him 43 times, causing his death. Then Cramer and Jacob Carreon-Hamilton, 21, cut up Nguyen’s body in the storage unit prior to putting the victim into his van.
Carreon-Hamilton pleaded guilty to assisting a criminal, abuse of a corpse, and resisting law enforcement in July. A video he recorded of the dismemberment was shown to the jury. He was given a five year prison sentence.
