Mich. man sentenced for killing, dismembering girlfriend, and storing her remains in coolers

STURGIS, Mich. (TCD) -- A 39-year-old man will spend decades behind bars for the 2019 slaying and dismemberment of his girlfriend, whose mutilated remains were found in two coolers.

The Michigan Attorney General’s Office announced Friday, June 2, that Wade Allen will spend 39 to 60 years in prison for second-degree homicide, two to five years for attempted dismemberment and mutilation, and 38 months to five years for attempted third-degree criminal sexual conduct. Allen pleaded no contest in January.

According to court documents, on May 22, 2019, a man who referred to himself as "Steven" reported that Allen "had killed Kelly Jean Warner, dismembered her body, and stuffed her remains in a cooler." Allen allegedly told Steven that Warner, his on-again, off-again girlfriend, "kind of got mouthy with him, he back handed her and accidentally killed her."

Allen also reportedly told Steven that he had placed his girlfriend in a bathtub for "a little while" before "chopping her up" and storing her remains.

Sturgis Police officers responded to Allen’s apartment, where they questioned him about Warner’s whereabouts. According to court documents, Allen told police Warner was not in the apartment, nor had he seen her recently. Warner allegedly said he last saw Warner in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and suggested that police search for her at a shelter there.

Officers then asked to enter Allen’s apartment, to which Warner refused, stating that his "apartment was a mess" and that "if the officers came back after he had the chance to clean it up, he would allow them entry."

Police informed Allen they were going to detain him and secure a search warrant, and then he reportedly allowed one officer to enter the apartment. An officer located a cooler and asked to open it, but Allen allegedly said he was "getting ready for summer" and declined the request.

The officer subsequently handcuffed Allen and placed him in the backseat of a police cruiser, where Allen reportedly experienced "symptoms of anxiety and claustrophobia." Court documents allege that the officer agreed to remove the handcuffs if Allen would "accompany the officer into the apartment" and allow him to search the cooler.

According to court documents, when the officer opened the cooler, he discovered "what appeared to be body parts," and he took Allen into custody.

In jail, Allen told his cellmates that he had fatally strangled his girlfriend. One of the inmates alerted authorities, and Allen sexually assaulted him in retaliation, the Attorney General’s Office said.

In addition to his prison sentence, Allen will have to pay restitution for Warner’s burial-related costs, prosecution expenses, and related fines, according to the Attorney General’s Office. Allen will also have to register as a lifetime sex offender in the state of Michigan.

MORE:

• Sturgis Man Sentenced to Decades in Prison for Murder, Attempted Dismemberment, Criminal Sexual Conduct — Michigan Attorney General’s Office
• Sturgis Man Pleads on Murder, Criminal Sexual Conduct Charges — Michigan Attorney General’s Office, 1/30/2023
• Mich. man pleads no contest to fatally strangling and mutilating girlfriend, 1/31/2023 — TCD
• People of the State of Michigan v Wade Eugene Allen, 11/23/2021 — State of Michigan Court of Appeals