Killer describes executions for drugs in Puna
By Kevin Dayton
Advertiser Big Island Bureau
HILO, Hawai'i — Convicted killer Kyle Zengy Thurston Hill described yesterday how he shot two young men at close range last year during a drug robbery in Puna, a crime he said was first proposed by his former roommate John McGovern.
The shackled, handcuffed Hill took the witness stand during McGovern's murder trial, describing how Hill initiated the violence by using a single-shot .22-caliber rifle to shoot Wesley Matheson, 19, in the back of the neck.
HILL
Hill testified that the plan was to rob Matheson and Matheson's roommate Cassidy Toole to get a drug called AMT. They knew Matheson had the drug because they saw him weighing a quantity of it during an earlier visit to the home, Hill testified.
AMT, or alpha-methylated tryptamine, is a psychedelic drug with effects similar to mescaline and Ecstasy.
Hill testified that before going to the Fern Acres home of Toole and Matheson on May 6, 2002, Hill and McGovern planned to kill the pair. "We didn't want to worry about them coming back after us after we robbed them," Hill said.
Hill said he became so nervous after shooting Matheson that he was unable to reload the rifle. He said he carried the unloaded rifle into the house that Matheson shared with Toole, 20.
Toole, who was inside with McGovern, apparently had not noticed that Matheson had been shot outside, Hill said. Hill testified in an unemotional voice that he then went into the bathroom of the home, reloaded the rifle and brought it out to McGovern.
McGovern then used the rifle to shoot Toole in the head, Hill said. Hill testified he went back outside, looked into the eyes of Matheson, who was lying on his back, and realized Matheson was still alive.
Hill said he was unable to shoot Matheson a second time, so McGovern shot Matheson this time. Hill testified he then went back into the house and found Toole still moving, so Hill reloaded the rifle and shot Toole.
Hill said that after dumping the bodies in a vacant lot, he and McGovern searched the Fern Acres home. They discovered a quantity of AMT in the household freezer but not as much as they had expected, Hill testified.
McGovern is charged with first-degree murder, two counts of second-degree murder, auto theft and a firearms violation in connection with the case. If convicted of first-degree murder, he would face a mandatory sentence of life in prison without possibility of parole.
Last year Hill pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder for his part in the slayings. Each of those charges carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison with possibility of parole.
Under the terms of a plea agreement with Hill, prosecutors agreed to drop a charge of first-degree murder against Hill provided he would testify against McGovern. Prosecutors also agreed that Hill's two life sentences will be served concurrently, meaning Hill will eventually have a chance at parole, Hill testified.
The jury has watched a videotaped confession that McGovern made to police in which McGovern said he and Hill planned the murders because Toole and Matheson had threatened them.
In the taped statement, McGovern said Toole and Matheson were angry because they had bought Ecstasy from some of his friends but the transaction had not worked out as planned.
McGovern and Hill were arrested in connection with the slayings after Hill responded to an offer of a reward for information on the disappearance of Matheson and Toole. Hill testified that in his effort to collect the award, he provided a map to where the bodies were dumped.
Reach Kevin Dayton at kdayton@honoluluadvertiser.com or (808) 935-3916.
