Jealous Boyfriend Killed Black Man over White Woman, Kept Body Home for Week and Showed It Off To Friends, Sentenced To Life in Prison

Jealousy is something that drives people insane; it’s something that most people can’t manage in most situations, and it drives them to make the worst decisions of their life. Only those who have been in a relationship with a jealous partner understand what it’s like to be constantly under pressure at all times of your life.

Although terminating a relationship with this type of partner is the simplest method to avoid problems, many people will continue to be in toxic relationships. Unfortunately, a jealous partner will almost always do something stupid and embarrassing at some point.

So it was with S. Vogel, now 32 years old, who will never see the light of day again after being sentenced to life in jail without the chance of parole earlier this week. Vogel was convicted of multiple offenses in the tragic incident in 2020 in which he killed a guy while reportedly talking to his girlfriend.

M. Williams, 44, was identified as the victim in the “cold-blooded” case, according to court filings. On September 16, 2020, firefighters and officers in Iowa responded to a complaint about a ditch fire. Firefighters quickly realized that a human body was on fire shortly after arriving.

After determining that the body was Williams, investigators arrested Vogel two days later as the primary suspect in his death, alleging that he had discussed murdering Williams with his girlfriend. Williams, however, was murdered at least four days before fire workers arrived at the area where he was set on fire, according to preliminary autopsy results.

Vogel enticed Williams to his home, then repeatedly hit him over the head with a blunt object, according to the investigators assigned to the case. A medical examiner testified that he then hangedWilliams by the neck until he died. The official cause of death was determined to be strangulation.

At least two witnesses said in court that Williams then kept the dead body in the basement of his home, where he reportedly showed it off to other people, largely friends, for about a week before dumping it in a ditch and setting it on fire.

Vogel was not the only person involved in the case, according to the investigators. Vogel’s mother and boyfriend, according to different evidence, were aware of everything and even assisted the perpetrator in transporting and burning the body from his home. They were both charged with one crime of mistreatment of a corpse, one count of destruction of evidence, and one count of accessory after the fact.

The only reason for the incident, according to authorities, is that Williams allegedly spoke to Vogel’s girlfriend. Despite the lack of evidence, Williams’ family members continue to assert that the attack was racially motivated, referring to the murder as a modern-day “lynching.”

“It’s putting that rope around his neck and holding it for over six minutes, causing his death, is the definition of a hanging. A lynching,” Williams’ aunt, P. Terrell told IPR. “A white man lynched a Black man over a white woman.”

Vogel was described as “cold-blooded” by the judge assigned to the case on several occasions, and he claimed that he handled the victim like an animal. The court was pleased with Vogel’s sentencing, stating that under Iowa law, life in prison without the possibility of release is a suitable punishment for people like him.

“You treated M. Williams like he was not human,” Judge reportedly said. “You clubbed him. Strangled him to death. Kept him in your basement like an animal that you would kill. You wrapped up his body, set it on fire. And you dehumanized M. Williams. And Mr. Williams did not deserve that.”

Vogel was found guilty last month of first-degree murder and mistreatment of a corpse on one count each. On Tuesday, he was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of release. The other suspects in the case are due to appear in court in the near future.