In a shocking incident in US’s Pennsylvania, a loud-snoring man allegedly murdered his neighbour with whom he had a long-running conflict over the midnight noise of snoring, which the victim claimed he could hear through the walls connecting their homes.
According to the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office, Christopher James Casey, 55, was arrested on 18th January after fatally stabbing 62-year-old Robert Wallace on the 15th January (Sunday) evening during an argument over snoring.
Robert Wallace arrived at Casey’s house in Hatboro, about 20 miles north of Philadelphia on Sunday, as Casey was having dinner. He arrived at Casey’s place to complain the loud snoring that he could hear in his house. He pulled out a screen and unlocked a window on Casey’s porch before the two started screaming at each other over loud snoring by Casey.
The altercation turned heated, and Casey stabbed Wallace in the chest multiple times with a huge, military-style knife, according to authorities. Wallace, who was found lying on the ground 50 feet from his residence, was brought to Abington Hospital and pronounced dead. Meanwhile, the accused Casey was also taken to the same hospital for treatment of a self-inflicted stab injury in his right thigh.
The accused told investigators at the hospital that Wallace was not threatening him when he stabbed him in the doorway, but that the two had been having “personal issues” over the preceding 18 months, leading to multiple police calls over Wallace’s snoring complaints.
According to the affidavit, after about 20 minutes of conversing through the window, Wallace seemed to cool down and wanted to shake hands, offering to help pay for nasal surgery to ease Casey’s snoring. The accused, however, did not believe in victim Wallace’s intention to sort things out and unlocked his home door, concealing a knife and stun pistol beneath a blanket.
According to police, he called 911 and informed police that Wallace “broke my window. I attacked a neighbour. He came to attack me.” Police said they found blood both inside and outside the house, with the window screen scattered across the lawn with the window wide open.
Wallace’s autopsy report determined that the cause of death was multiple stab wounds and the manner of death was a homicide.
Police charged Casey with third-degree murder, voluntary manslaughter, and possession of criminal instruments. The accused was in jail on Friday, with bail set at $1 million. The next hearing on the matter is scheduled for 29th January.
