A Manhattan man charged with the first degree murder of a Fort Riley soldier, and the attempted murder four others appeared in a packed court room on Monday morning at Riley county district court.
34-year-old Mathew Wilson is charged with the 1st degree premeditated murder of Micheal Lowery, and the attempted 1st degree murder of Dustin Ferguson, Christine Kim, Alexya Mailea , and Joel Solano in the early morning hours of April 7th of this year. Wilson also faces a charge of aggravated battery related to breaking into the apartment while it was occupied by the owners. If convicted Wilson could receive Life in Prison for first degree murder, and multiple years could be added on for each additional charge in the case.
According to the charges Wilson broke into the apartment on Garden Way with the intent to kill. The Solano charge stated that during the incident Wilson yelled through a closed door in the apartment saying he would shoot through it. According to the statement Wilson said he was there to kill the men.
Solano and Ferguson were seen in the courtroom during the hearing, and sat quietly during the proceedings.
Wilson’s plea was not guilty to all of the charges, and a formal trial date is now set for November 18th at nine am in Riley County District Court.
Pretrial is set for September 17th at nine am.
