Disposable Cup Leads to Conviction in 40 Year Old MN Murder Case

Minneapolis, MN (KROC-AM News) - A Minnesota man has been sent to prison for a murder that occurred 40 years ago.

The criminal complaint against 67-year-old Matthew Russell Brown says the Barnum man was finally charged last year after “cold case” investigators obtained a disposable plastic cup containing his DNA. The court document says that followed several unsuccessful attempts by investigators to surreptitiously obtain a DNA sample from him after a genealogist used a DNA profile from blood collected from the crime scene in 1984 to identify Brown as a suspect.

Get our free mobile app

According to the charges, Brown was accused of breaking into a Minneapolis apartment in the early morning of July 19, 1984 and fatally stabbing 32-year-old Robert Miller. Minneapolis police found his body in the kitchen of the apartment after officers responded to a 911 call and arrived to find two women rushing out of the building.

Google

The court document noted that one of the women was bleeding from the cut on her face, while the other woman was unharmed but was described as extremely distraught. Both women told the officers that an unknown male had broken into their residence and attacked them with a knife.

The criminal complaint says investigators found blood that did not appear to be from the victim leading away from the back exit to the apartment, which ultimately led to Brown's arrest for the murder.

Matthew Brown criminal complaint - Hennepin County Court

When he was charged last May, Brown was indicted on first and second-degree murder charges, along with a count of first-degree burglary involving an assault. Court records show he entered a guilty plea on Wednesday to the second-degree murder charge through a plea agreement.

The judge presiding over the case sentenced Brown to 20 years in prison with credit for the 457 days he spent in custody following his arrest.

More Minnesota News: