Date of Publication: January 5, 2025, 03:01h.
Last Updated on: January 5, 2025, 03:01h.
A man from Montana has been given a 140-year prison sentence for fatally shooting his wife and a bartender at the Four Aces Bar in 2023, a cardroom and slots tavern situated in Superior, Montana.
Kraig Walter Benson, aged 49, was convicted in October for the murder of Jenny Benson, 49, and Logan Gardner, 43. He believed that the victims were having an affair.
In August 2023, Benson pleaded not guilty to two counts of deliberate homicide and using a weapon in a violent crime, despite the bar’s security video capturing the killings and multiple witnesses observing the act.
Disturbing Incident
The security footage shows the Bensons seated together at a table inside the Four Aces. At one point, Benson leaves the bar to supposedly smoke a cigarette. During this time, he retrieves a gun from his Chevrolet Tahoe parked outside before returning to his seat at the bar.
At 9:19 p.m., he pulls out the gun from his waistband and shoots his wife in the head while patrons flee the scene.
He then aims the gun at Gardner, who is trying to escape through the front door, and fires a shot. He then turns back to his wife and shoots her again as she lies on the ground.
He proceeds to fire three more shots at Gardner, triggers the fire alarm, and drives off in the Chevrolet. Benson was later apprehended while driving on a highway with a flat tire.
During the trial, Benson appeared as a witness and claimed no memory of the incident, instead placing the blame on his wife. His statements caused shock among those present in the courtroom, according to local news reports.
Astonishing Testimony
“During the trial, the state portrayed Jenny as an innocent angel without any flaws. They were mistaken,” Benson stated, as reported by NBC Montana. “Since my arrest, through the discovery process, it has revealed another side of my wife of 22 years.”
The prosecution objected several times to Benson’s characterization of his wife as a “dishonest and unfaithful” individual.
“I also lost my best friend that night, my best friend and the love of my life,” he claimed.
To my friends and family, I appreciate your support,” he continued. “To my children, I cherish you more than anything in this world.”
Benson’s daughter, Paige Benson, described her father as a “self-centered person” and expressed feeling unsafe with him in society.
His ex-father-in-law conveyed his wish for Benson to endure a wretched existence in prison.