A Montgomery County man was sentenced to state prison for murder after admitting he killed his father
Justin Wilson pleaded guilty to third-degree murder in the death of his father, Kevin. Wilson initially told police his father shot himself, but his story quickly unraveled, prosecutors say.
A Trappe man who killed his father, after initially claiming he had shot himself, was sentenced to 17½ to 35 years in state prison.
Justin Wilson, 24, entered a guilty plea to third-degree murder in the February shooting of his father, Kevin, before Montgomery County Court Judge William Carpenter.
Wilson’s attorney, Danton Moyer, said his client wants to express his “deep and profound remorse for his actions, including lying about the murder and not immediately taking responsibility for his actions.
“Justin loved his father, and he wishes more than anything that he could take back what he’s done and bring back his father,” Moyer said. “He wishes the rest of Kevin’s family and his loved ones peace and healing as they and he continue to grieve.”
Deputy District Attorney Samantha Cauffman, who prosecuted the case, said Wilson’s family was left doubly hurt by the case: Wilson misled them about their loved one’s violent death, and then doubled down on the lie he told police.
“The victim’s niece described how this defendant planned the funeral down to the paying the extra money to have the enhanced sound system, picking out the songs and what pieces from the Bible would be read and then he gave a speech at the celebration of life ceremony,” she said. “All of this stuff, all the while telling all the friends and family of his father that his father killed himself.”
Troopers responding to Wilson’s 911 call on Feb. 1 found his father, 61, shot once in the head inside his second-floor bedroom at their home on Dewes Place, according to the affidavit of probable cause for his arrest. The home’s first floor showed signs of a struggle, with broken furniture and other damage.
In an interview with police after the shooting, Wilson said he and his father had gotten into an argument after watching a UFC mixed martial arts match together, according to the affidavit. During the argument, he said, he goaded his father into killing himself, calling him a “bum and a [expletive] loser.”
He denied that their argument had turned physical, despite the damage in the home, the affidavit said.
A Taurus handgun that Wilson had purchased weeks earlier was found in his father’s left hand, though investigators noted in their report that his fingers were loosely gripping the handgun.
Later, a forensic pathologist determined that Kevin Wilson’s gunshot wound could not have been self-inflicted, based on the angle and other factors, the affidavit said.
Later, Justin Wilson said, as he was playing the video game Fortnite, he heard a gunshot and found his father dead in his room.
And as troopers continued to investigate, members of Wilson’s extended family said he had been acting strangely. They said Wilson was a pathological liar who was obsessed with money, and had begun asking about inheriting his father’s investment accounts and their home almost immediately after the shooting, according to the affidavit.
Kevin Wilson’s siblings told police that he had often called them in a panic, unsure of how to handle his son’s violent behavior. The younger Wilson would allegedly kick open doors in their home, as well as punch holes in the home’s walls.
They said Justin Wilson also repeatedly berated his father, calling him a “fat slob” and lamenting that he was not as wealthy as his siblings.
Wilson’s cousin also told officers he made bizarre statements to her at his funeral, telling her that his father tried to shoot himself with his own gun, but that it jammed, prompting him to use the Taurus found in his hand.
