Man Charged in Unspeakable Death Involving Duct Tape

John Matthew Chapman will be charged Monday in the death of Jaime Rae Feden
By Neal Colgrass,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 29, 2020 2:30 PM CST
The FBI Says He Lured Her Into the Desert. Then, This
John Matthew Chapman.   (Allegheny County Jail)

A Pennsylvania man could face the death penalty for allegedly taking a special-needs woman to the desert to watch her die. John Matthew Chapman, 40, is set to be formally charged Monday in federal court in the death of Jaime Rae Feden, 33, NBC News reports. Authorities say he lured her on a September vacation to Nevada, saying they might buy a house there—but his "kill kit" was ready to go. On the trip, he allegedly convinced her to take part in an S&M photo shoot in the Lincoln County desert, where he zip-tied the 4-foot-1, 75-pound woman to a signpost and duct-taped her mouth and nose. "He then watched JF die from asphyxiation," says an FBI special agent who claims Chapman has confessed.

The FBI says Chapman then went back and lived in her Bethel Park house while posing as her on Facebook, the Post-Gazette reports. Contacted by a worried friend, police searched the property and found unsettling evidence—including forged CIA identification in Chapman's name and a backpack containing zip ties and duct tape, the FBI says. Police then realized Chapman was masking his phone number to make it look like Feden's, and when he gave them conflicting information, he was arrested. Feden's naked body had since been found in the desert and identified via dental records. CNN reports that Chapman could get life in prison or the death penalty on charges of kidnapping resulting in death. He has a previous sentence of 18 months in prison for wire fraud. (More murder stories.)

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