PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. (TCN) — A 40-year-old man has been sentenced to life in prison after beating his friend to death with an ax after he did not return a borrowed car on time.
On May 21, 2024, a man called 911 and told dispatchers his neighbor, Matthew Weldon, had confessed to killing someone, according to the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office. Responding officers found the suspect, Weldon, outside the home covered in blood.
Law & Crime reports Weldon said, “He is dead. He’s in there.”
Inside the residence, responding officers found the victim, 49-year-old Carroll Bryan, and pronounced him dead at the scene. He had suffered multiple blunt force injuries to the head, neck, and arm, according to police. Law & Crime reports Weldon killed Bryan with an ax. An autopsy found Bryan had suffered four chop wounds from the ax as well, the Tampa Bay Times reports.
Weldon was taken to jail and was initially charged with second-degree murder, per the sheriff’s office.
Investigators learned Weldon had recently let Bryan borrow his Jaguar SUV after meeting him at a bar, Law & Crime reports. Bryan did not return the vehicle, so after a week went by, Weldon contacted the police. A deputy telephoned Bryan and told him to return the car to Weldon, WFLA reports.
On the day he was killed, Bryan returned the car to Weldon. They reportedly got into a shoving match a few hours later. Home surveillance footage showed Weldon grabbing an ax, but the homicide itself was not captured on camera.
After he killed Bryan, Weldon reportedly went to his neighbor’s house and said he needed advice. He told his neighbor he had killed someone, and the neighbor dialed 911, according to Law & Crime.
WSTP reports a jury found Weldon guilty of first-degree murder on Sept. 4.
Weldon was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on Sept. 18, according to WFLA.
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