BRUTAL MURDER OF 4’-1”, 75 POUND SPECIAL NEEDS WOMAN

Pennsylvania man charged with kidnapping woman found dead in Nevada desert

By David K. Li and Andrew Blankstein

NBC News
February 28, 2020

Federal prosecutors in Las Vegas charged a Pennsylvania man with the kidnapping of a special needs woman who was bound to a signpost before she died from asphyxiation in Nevada, officials said Friday.

John Matthew Chapman, 40, is scheduled to appear in federal court in western Pennsylvania on Monday, when he'll be formally charged with kidnapping, resulting in the death of Jaime Rae Feden, 33.

Chapman was arrested on Nov. 15 by police in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, and allegedly told authorities how he kidnapped Feden, prosecutors said.

He drove Feden from her home in Bethel Park to Nevada in mid-September, telling her they were going on a vacation and a house-hunting trip, authorities said.

"However, Chapman had planed to kill JF before they left Pennsylvania and he had a kill kit ready before their departure for Nevada," according to a court affidavit by FBI Special Agent Jesse Laramee.

On or about Sept. 25, "Chapman convinced JF to drive into the desert under the pretext of participating in an S&M (sadomasochistic/bondage) themed photo shoot" in Lincoln, County, Nevada, according to Laramee.

"Chapman stated he bound JF's hands and feet with plastic zip ties and affixed her to a signpost, He then applied duct tape to her mouth and then to her nose until such time she was unable to breathe. He then watched JF die from asphyxiation."

The suspect then stripped the 4-foot-1, 75-pound Feden naked and left her by the signpost before driving home to Pennsylvania, authorities said.

Feden's body was found on Oct. 5, according to the criminal complaint.

Chapman's public defender in Pittsburgh declined to comment Friday.

"Chapman admitted that he killed JF for her money," according to the federal complaint. He faces up to life in prison if convicted.