Pizza Hut employee charged in death of colleague over $7K inheritance check

Authorities in Wisconsin said a Pizza Hut employee killed his colleague at work after the victim cashed a $7,000 inheritance check and showed the money to the suspect and other co-workers. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, authorities on the morning of February 7 found the body of Alex Stengel in a garbage cart outside a Pizza Hut restaurant in South Milwaukee.

The suspect, identified as 31-year-old Kavonn Ingram, allegedly killed Stengel two days before his body was found. Authorities said Stengel suffered gunshot and stab wounds, adding that it seemed his wallet, keys, and cellphone were nowhere to be found at the time his body was discovered.

Police also said they suspect the killing happened in the restaurant’s kitchen after tracing blood from the location where Stengel’s body was found to the murder scene. Following the killing, the victim was covered in a plastic bag before being put in a garbage can and disposed of. 

Authorities ultimately linked Ingram to the killing after reviewing surveillance footage. The video showed the suspect moving the victim’s body out of the restaurant before returning inside. That occurred on the morning of February 5.

A review of the restaurant’s computer records also showed Stengel reported for work on February 5 and clocked in at 9:30 a.m. before later getting the register ready and opening it at 10:09 a.m., the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. But a Pizza Hut regional manager said that was not common practice as no one had come in to buy anything at the time.

Stengel is said to have later clocked out at 10 minutes before 11 a.m. Ingram was spotted moving the garbage can 25 minutes after the victim supposedly clocked out. Authorities said Ingram knew how to operate the restaurant’s computer and time management system, leading them to suspect he clocked Stengel out after allegedly killing him.

The restaurant’s general manager also said Stengel’s phone sent her text messages from 10:28 a.m. on February 5. She also said the victim’s phone called her before the same number sent a text claiming Stengel had clocked out because he was sick. Ingram is said to have sent the message, with the regional manager also saying that Stengel failed to report to work on February 6.

The regional manager informed investigators that Stengel on February 3 showed Ingram and other co-workers an amount of money he had cashed when he came to work. It was said to be an inheritance check, and police said they believe “money was the motive for this crime.”

Ingram, who was arrested on February 11, has since been charged with first-degree intentional homicide as a party to a crime with use of a dangerous weapon, hiding a corpse as a party to a crime, armed robbery as a party to a crime, and possession of a firearm by a felon.