LAS VEGAS– A Pennsylvania man who authorities say killed his girlfriend in the Nevada desert has been convicted.
A U.S. District Court jury in Nevada on Wednesday found 44-year-old John Matthew Chapman guilty of one count of kidnapping resulting in death, court records show. He faces life in prison at a sentencing hearing scheduled for August 2.
Authorities have not released the woman’s name. They say that after killing her in September 2019, Chapman posed as her on her Facebook messenger account and lived at her home.
The woman’s neighbors in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, became suspicious when they had not seen her or her vehicle for months but did see Chapman in the house, prosecutors said. Police conducted a welfare check and found identification cards with Chapman’s name and photo, the victim’s cellphone, zip ties and a roll of duct tape, they said.
Chapman admitted that he led the woman to believe the two were taking a road trip to Las Vegas for a photo shoot, prosecutors said. Instead, they said, he took her to a Nevada desert, tied her up and suffocated her. They added that he admitted to killing her for her money.
The Associated Press left an email message with Chapman’s attorneys Thursday seeking comment.