Pa. Man Recently Freed From Prison Accused Of Stabbing Aunt To Death
NORRISTOWN, Pa. (AP) - A man recently released from prison has been charged in the stabbing death of the aunt with whom he had been staying, authorities said.
Matthew Wertz Jr., 28, was charged in Montgomery County with first- and third-degree murder and possession of an instrument of crime in Friday's death of Catherine Wanamaker, 60, in her Conshohocken home, prosecutors said Saturday.
Officers responding to a report of a woman screaming shortly after 5 a.m. Friday found the victim stabbed to death. The suspect was seen several feet away, apparently stabbing himself in the throat area, and was taken to Lankenau hospital for treatment, authorities said.
The victim had 30 stab wounds in the chest, back, side, face, neck and head, and also had defensive wounds on both hands, authorities said in a criminal complaint. A bloody knife with a 6-inch blade was found in the dining room.
Authorities said the defendant's mother told them that her son had been released from Montgomery County Correctional Facility on Monday and her sister had offered to take care of him. She said he abused heroin, painkillers, crack cocaine and other drugs and he became angry and acted out when "he needs drugs or wants to get drugs."
Investigators allege that Wertz told detectives that he had committed the crime but "was not in my right frame of mind" at the time. Conshohocken police reported seven prior contacts involving victim and suspect, including a July domestic disturbance in which he allegedly threatened her while holding a knife during what authorities called a "panic attack."
"This is a terrible tragedy. A woman opened her door to a relative who had just been released from jail, and in return she was brutally murdered," District Attorney Kevin Steele said in a statement.
Wertz was denied bail and remained in custody; it's unclear whether he has an attorney.
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