MONROVIA, Md. — A New Jersey man was sentenced to 40 years behind bars for the September 2023 stabbing death of his girlfriend in Frederick County.
It all started when Sheriff's deputies were called to the Costco Distribution Center in Monrovia.
Security there reported a man named Matthew Sidney Watley punching through the windshield of his tractor-trailer, while screaming and yelling incoherently.
Deputies tried getting Watley to turn off the engine, but he refused and instead tried driving out of the depot.
After deflating the truck's tires, deputies removed Watley and placed him under arrest.
Watley appeared to have blood all over himself.
Inside the truck, on the cab floor, deputies discovered the body of his girlfriend, 46-year-old Candice Thompson.
She'd been stabbed multiple times in the back.
In court, Thompson's mother called Watley "a monster."
"I don’t want to live after what this monster did to my daughter; he destroyed my family,” she told the judge.
Turns Watley and Thompson had a well documented history of domestic violence filed in New Jersey with the Winslow Township Police Department.
"These violent offenders need to be treated harshly at the outset before they go on to take the life of their intimate partner," Frederick County State’s Attorney Charlie Smith said after sentencing.
If you or someone you love is in an abusive relationship, the National Domestic Violence Hotline is 800-799-7233. In Maryland, the House of Ruth's 24-7 line is 410-889-7884.
