The brutal slaying of Pennsylvania landscaper Kevin Mengel Jr. at the hands of his estranged wife's young lover was done solely to avoid a "messy divorce," according to a witness in their murder trial, as reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Divorces can indeed get messy, and Atlanta divorce lawyers could spend days talking about their messiest cases. But having your husband murdered with a shovel, of which 34-year-old Morgan Marie Mengel stands accused, seems infinitely more so.
Authorities charged Morgan Mengel and 21-year-old Stephen M. Shappell, her lover, with conspiring to kill Kevin Mengel on June 17. Although Morgan Mengel lied to investigators about her relationship with Stephen Shappell, he didn't and she eventually changed her statement after learning that he admitted to the affair.
Stephen Shappell was an employee of the victim's landscaping company, MKB Property Maintenance, which is named after the initials of the estranged couple's three children.
The Co-defendants first conspired to kill Kevin Mengel by poisoning a lemon Snapple drink at his office, according to police. But after that failed to work, Stephen Shappell allegedly beat him to death with a shovel and then buried his body in a field.
Morgan Mengel, who was represented by a public defender, reportedly kept her head down throughout most of the preliminary hearing.
Witness testimony by Det. David S. Maurer revealed that Morgan Mengel told police that Kevin Mengel sent her a test message on June 18 saying, "he had had enough, he was leaving." He said she admitted to poisoning her husband's Snapple to "numb his central nervous system" so they could more easily kill him.
She also allegedly admitted to David Maurer that she wanted him dead because she didn't want to go through a "messy" divorce. But what's messier than a first-degree murder trial?
Related Resources:
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Impact of Divorce on Spouses (FindLaw)
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Contact a Georgia Family Law Attorney (FindLaw)
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Islamic TV Founder Charged with Murder of Wife Aasiya Hassan (FindLaw's Common Law Blog)
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