Man Guilty in ‘Bizarre’ Murder Case
SANTA ANA — A former Santa Ana tow truck operator faces life in prison without parole after being convicted Monday of killing his best friend’s ex-wife in a case involving a trailer-park tryst, murder for hire and betrayal--circumstances described by the judge as “bizarre.”
After two days of deliberations, an Orange County Superior Court jury found Neill F. Matzen, 37, guilty of first-degree murder in the November, 1990, beating death of Donna Jean Connaty, a 34-year-old Buena Park nurse.
The jury also found Matzen guilty of two special circumstances, lying in wait and murder for financial gain, meaning that he faces a sentence of life in prison without parole when he is sentenced April 10.
Matzen was accused of bludgeoning Donna Connaty with an iron bar at the request of Richard Connaty, her ex-husband, for $15,000 that he planned to get by refinancing his home.
For 14 months before Donna Connaty’s murder, Richard Connaty had been having an affair with Matzen’s wife, Cindy, according to a statement Cindy Matzen gave to police.
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