The Michigan man charged with murdering Detroit radio news anchor Jim Matthews and injuring his family was on supervised release when he allegedly committed the crime.
Arthur Levan Williamson, 55, has been charged with one count of first-degree homicide, homicide felony murder, two counts of intent to murder, and three counts of unlawful imprisonment in the attack on Matthews’ family, which occurred late last week. Matthews, the overnight anchor at WWJ-AM for the past seven years, was killed in the attack.
Williamson was on probation when he allegedly committed the murder and attacks, and one of the conditions of his supervised release was that he would not commit any crimes, Law & Crime reported. Prison records show Williamson has a history of committing violent crimes, including a 2013 breaking and entering offense during which Williamson assaulted a police officer. He was convicted of assault with the intent to murder, kidnapping, and multiple weapons offenses. He was placed on supervised release on June 5, 2019.
While Matthews was killed, his girlfriend and 5-year-old daughter were both hospitalized, and his 10-year-old son is in critical condition after apparently trying to fight off the attacker.
Ashley Quigley, the sister of Matthews’ girlfriend Nicole Guertin, started a GoFundMe page to raise money for the family. On Monday, she posted an update to say her sister and niece were in stable condition. Her nephew has had more difficulty and was “forced to undergo brain surgery and ear surgery” over the weekend.
“Thankfully, his surgery was very successful, and after some tests and scans, his neck was deemed okay. He was able to take off his C-Collar which helped make the swelling in his face go down. He is still sedated while he heals, but he can move both sides of his body,” Quigley wrote on Monday.
Police received a call Friday afternoon from Guertin, who said she had been violently attacked in her home and that she and her daughter had “escaped.” Matthews’ brother, Joe Nicolai, told WXYZ-TV that Guertin had apparently been restrained before she could escape.
“Nicole, my brother’s girlfriend, was laying out in the parking lot and was duct-taped and bleeding so my wife went out to hold her hand,” Nicolai told the outlet. “It’s not even something you’d see in a horror movie.”
Williamson, the accused attacker, reportedly knew the family and was a frequent visitor to their home, police told media outlets. He was found in the home’s basement with a self-inflicted wound and an apparent overdose, Law & Crime reported. It is still unclear just how he knew the family or his motive for allegedly attacking them.
“There is no motive, I don’t know why he was in the house. I talked to the lead investigator, and my brother probably came home to this. He comes home about 5:30 in the morning and was probably surprised and attacked,” Nicolai told WXYZ-TV. “I believe that [Matthews’ son] was trying to fight off this man that was attacking and trying to kill his father, and that’s how [the son] ended up injured and tied and put into a closet.”