2 Suspects Charged for Dismembering Vietnamese American Man, GoFundMe Created for Surviving Family

Editorial Staff
·3 min read

EDITOR'S NOTE: The details of this article include information that some readers may find distressing.

New details about a Vietnamese American man in Indiana whose body was found dismembered were released on Tuesday.

The original report: Shane Nguyen, 55, was found dead in a crashed car in the 1500 block of Forest Park Boulevard in Fort Wayne on April 25, according to WANE, which first reported about it on April 26.


  • Nguyen was last seen as he was leaving the Allen County Memorial Coliseum around 3 p.m. on April 23, according to the Fort Wayne Police Department.

  • On April 24, authorities announced Nguyen was missing and issued a Silver Alert for him. Around 5 a.m. on April 25, officers pursued Nguyen's stolen vehicle in the Lake and Coliseum area and later found it abandoned and crashed into the back of a home.

  • The male suspects, Matthew J. Cramer, 21; Jacob D. Carreon-Hamilton, 20; and Cody Clements, 20; were arrested and all in custody on the evening of April 26. Clements turned himself in.

  • The original report stated: "Police found Nguyen inside, who died at the scene. It’s not clear who was driving the vehicle."


Confirmed gruesome details: Police found a dismembered body stuffed in trash bags inside the van, reported Fort Wayne’s NBC.

  • Surveillance video also showed Carreon-Hamilton driving the van with Cramer around 11 p.m. at a storage facility in Fort Wayne.

  • Officers used a search warrant for the storage unit, where they found a bloodied tarp and a large knife with Nguyen’s belongings.

  • Cramer told police he asked Nguyen for a ride from Elkhart to Fort Wayne and planned to kill him before reaching the latter city, according to the affidavit.

  • While at the storage unit, Cramer put Nguyen in a chokehold until he was unconscious. Nguyen’s head hit the concrete as Cramer dragged his body out of the van and into the storage unit.

  • The trio drove to stores in Goshen to buy tarps, a hacksaw, hacksaw blades, a plastic tub, two shovels and a large knife, using money stolen from Nguyen, according to police.

  • Carreon-Hamilton held Nguyen’s body down while Clements dismembered Nguyen’s body, reported Newsweek.

  • Cramer and Carreon-Hamilton dropped off Clements before returning to Fort Wayne to “get rid of the body.” That’s when police started chasing them.

  • Carreon-Hamilton claimed he had no idea what happened until they went to the storage unit.

  • Cramer appeared in Allen Superior Court on Tuesday and charged with murder, resisting law enforcement and abuse of a corpse. Carreon-Hamilton is charged with resisting law enforcement, assisting a criminal, and abuse of a corpse. Clements has no charges as of this writing.

  • Cramer is in the Allen County Jail, held without bond on the murder charge. Carreon-Hamilton remains in the Allen County Jail on a $15,000 bond.




Grieving Nguyen family:Nguyen's cousin, Tran Hoang, organized a GoFundMe page for Nguyen family has raised over $140,000 of its $20,000 goal in a day as of this writing.

  • Nguyen leaves behind his wife and two sons Ethan and Noah, ages 20 and 17.

  • He was described as a devoted father, husband and community member.

  • “He'll always be remembered for being kind, welcoming, and available to help anyone in need,” Hoang wrote.


Featured Image via ABC21 WPTA

Enjoy this content? Read more from NextShark!

Swedish Restaurant Exposed For Having Xi Jinping 'Bat Man' Posters

Football Player Stops Suspect Months Before Same Man is Arrested for Invading Elderly Asian Home

Mexican American Grandmother, 70, Mistaken for Asian, Beaten and Dragged Across LA Bus

Man Punches INDIGENOUS Canadian Woman for Sneezing, Tells Her to 'Go Back to China'