A Wisconsin woman has been charged with murdering a man she had recently met on Facebook by repeatedly stabbing, kicking and running him over with his own SUV after the pair spent the day together drinking alcohol and snorting cocaine.
Lydia Carmona-Cartagena, 23, was arrested on Friday in Milwaukee on charges of first-degree intentional homicide and felony use of a dangerous weapon stemming from the killing of 41-year-old Chad Wilson, a local advocate for former prisoners who was featured in a 2016 documentary about criminal justice reform.
According to a criminal complaint against Carmona-Cartagena obtained by The Daily Beast, the mother-of-one told investigators that she ran over Wilson multiple times ‘to make sure he was dead’ because she claimed that he threatened to pull a gun on her, and she thought he was a gang member and had access to guns.
The case began unfolding just before 6am on Thursday, when police responded to the area of North 60th and West Stark streets in Milwaukee for a report of a homicide.
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Lydia Carmona-Cartagena, 23 (left), has been charged with first-degree intentional homicide and felony use of a dangerous weapon for allegedly repeatedly stabbing and running over Chad Wilson, 41 (right)
A criminal complaint says Carmona-Cartagena used Wilson’s own black Cadillac (pictured) to run him over several times, including after taking a spin around the block
The incident took place on the morning of December 9, as Wilson was driving Carmona-Cartagena home after an alcohol- and cocaine-fueled date
Officers found Wilson lying in the street, suffering from multiple stab wounds and other injuries all over his body, and pronounced him dead at the scene.
An autopsy performed by the Milwaukee Medical Examiner’s Office has determined that Wilson died of blunt-force trauma, and his manner of death was ruled a homicide.
When police tracked down Carmona-Cartagena at her house, she was behind the wheel of Wilson’s black 2011 Cadillac SRX SUV, which had blood on the passenger side headlight and grill.
Police observed that the 23-year-old also had blood on her.
As she was being arrested, Carmona-Cartagena made a rambling, unsolicited statement, telling officers: ‘I know why I hit him for my safety, but I was hoping that he was still ok. That’s just the kind of person I am, but I 100% refuse because I am 23 years old and I have a two year old at home and there’s no way you guys would be able to force me to go to a doctor when I’m feeling completely fine.’
The complaint states that the woman ‘also told officers [Wilson] said he was going to pull a gun on her, so she ran him over.’
Detectives later interviewed several eyewitnesses, one of whom reported seeing Carmona-Cartagena and Wilson ‘tussling’ in the street, followed by the man yelling ‘Help!’
‘[Carmona-Cartagena] then walked over and kicked the male in the face while he was on the ground “like a dog,” the witness recounted.
Carmona-Cartagena said, according to the complaint, that she hit Wilson several times ‘to make sure he was dead’ because she thought he was a gang member and would retaliate
The 23-year-old murder suspect then allegedly got behind the wheel of Wilson’s SUV and hit the man with the vehicle three or four times, then ‘drove around the block’ and ran the man over again.
‘[Witness] said that ultimately she saw the female run over the male’s neck and head,’ the complaint alleges.
Several people recalled seeing Carmona-Cartagena standing over Wilson’s lifeless body before getting back in his SUV and driving away as police vehicles raced towards the crime scene.
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When interviewed by homicide detectives, Carmona-Cartagena said that she had met Wilson through Facebook about a week or two ago, but they only got together in person on Wednesday.
The young mother said that Wilson had picked her up in his black Cadillac earlier in the day, and the two of them spent the next 24 hours drinking alcohol and doing drugs, including cocaine.
At the time of her arrest, Carmona-Cartagena was covered in blood and made a rambling statement
In the course of their date, Carmona-Cartagena told police that Wilson became angry at her for putting a lighter and cups on his table, so she asked him to drive her home.
On the way to her house, the woman said Wilson pulled over on Stark Street and told her to get out of the vehicle, which upset her because she was carrying a large bag of clothes.
The woman said she then took out a knife, approached Wilson and began to stab him, inflicting wounds to the legs and abdomen.
Wilson fought back and eventually wrestled the knife out of the woman’s hands, according to the complaint.
Carmona-Cartagena said she took Wilson’s car keys and a shoulder bag from him, got in the driver’s seat of his Cadillac and tried to run him over with it, but missed a couple of times before she was ‘finally able to him him in the street.’
The complaint states: ‘she saw he was still moving after she ran him over the first time, she she ran him over a few more times to make sure he was dead. She stated she ran him over the first time to kill him.’
According to the filing, Carmona-Cartagena told detectives that she knew she had numerous opportunities to leave, ‘but she thought he was a gang member and had access to guns and would come and retaliate.’
Carmona-Cartagena is seen sobbing during her initial court appearance on Monday, which concluded with a judge setting her bail at $100,000
Carmona-Cartagena told police she walked up to Wilson ‘and knew he was dead so she leaned over and closed his eyes. She then left the scene when she heard the sirens getting closer. She drove to her residence and a squad pulled up at her house a short time later.’
Wilson was described by those who knew him as an activist who dedicated his later years to helping ex-convicts like himself reintegrate into society.
He appeared in the 2016 documentary Milwaukee 53206, which followed several current and former inmates as they struggled to turn their lives around.
According to the movie’s description, Wilson was a drug dealer and spent 15 years going in and out of prison.
After regaining his freedom, he reconnected with his children and became involved in several local organizations that provide assistance to formerly incarcerated people.
‘It’s with total sadness and heartache to reflect on the passing of my friend Chad Wilson,’ Keith McQuirter, director of Milwaukee 53206, wrote in a Facebook post. ‘He opened his heart and life to the world during the making of the documentary MILWAUKEE 53206 and his story impacted people all across the country.’
Meanwhile, Carmona-Cartagena made her initial court appearance on Monday, during which she was seen sobbing as a prosecutor described her alleged offenses. A judge set her bail at $100.000, reported WISN.
Carmona-Cartagena is due back in court on December 23. If convicted as charged, she could face up to a life in prison plus five years.
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