CENTREVILLE, Mich. (Scripps News West Michigan) — A Michigan man will spend decades in prison for killing and mutilating his girlfriend, then sexually assaulting a fellow inmate once in custody, according to prosecutors.
This June 2, 2023 booking photo provided by the Michigan Dept. of Corrections shows Wade E. Allen. (Michigan DOC)
A judge sentenced Wade Allen, 39, on Thursday, five months after he pleaded no contest. His sentence is as follows:
- 39-60 years for second-degree homicide
- Two-five years for attempted dismemberment and mutilation
- 38 months-five years for attempted third-degree criminal sexual conduct to be served consecutively to the murder sentence
Allen’s sentencing includes restitution for the victim’s burial expenses, recovery of court costs of prosecution, associated fines and lifetime registration with the state’s sex offender registry.
Sturgis police officers arrested Allen on May 22, 2019, after getting a tip about the murder and dismemberment of Allen’s girlfriend.
When they searched Allen’s apartment, investigators say they found the mutilated remains of his girlfriend being stored in two coolers.
Allen talked to his cellmates in jail about how he strangled his girlfriend to the point of death, according to the AG’s office.
Nessel says Allen later found out that his cellmates passed that information along to authorities, so he sexually assaulted one of the inmates when they were rehoused together, in retaliation.
“I am grateful to the Sturgis Department of Public Safety, St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department and the St. Joseph County Prosecutor’s Office who spent countless hours on this case,” Nessel said at the time of Allen’s plea acceptance. “No sentence will be enough to overcome the grief of the victim’s family, or the anguish suffered by the victims, but hopefully today’s plea will allow the healing process to begin.”
This story was originally published by Scripps News Grand Rapids, an E.W. Scripps Company.
