PRINCETON, N.J. 27 February – A 31-year-old man has been charged with the brutal murder of his younger brother inside their upscale Princeton apartment, authorities said.
Matthew Hertgen is accused of killing 26-year-old Joseph Hertgen late Saturday night at the Michelle Mews apartment complex on Witherspoon Street. Police sources said the former college soccer player allegedly beat and slashed his brother, gouged out his eye, and ate it. He also reportedly set the family’s pet cat on fire.
Officers responded to a 911 call from Matthew and discovered Joseph’s mutilated body alongside a bloodied knife, fork, and plate—evidence suggesting cannibalism, investigators said. The charred remains of the cat were also found.
“This was gruesome. Way overboard,” a police source said, adding that the crime shocked investigators, especially in a community like Princeton.
Authorities believe Matthew used both a knife and a golf club to carry out the attack. He was arrested at the scene and later charged with first-degree murder, weapons offenses, and animal cruelty. If convicted, he faces life in prison.
Chilling Facebook Post Mirrors Crime Scene
In the days leading up to the attack, Matthew posted an ominous poem on Facebook containing disturbing imagery of knives, suffocation, and blood oozing from the eyes. One line read:
“I can see the knives sharpening…
Blood oozes out of his eyes…
He convulses, and he doesn’t stop…
He’s lost… He’s asleep… He’s dead.”
Police are reviewing the post as part of their investigation.
Family Had No Known History of Violence
The Hertgen family, originally from the Jersey Shore, had moved into their Princeton apartment after living in a $1.1 million home. Their father, David Hertgen Sr., is a senior executive at tech firm WiLine Networks.
Joseph Hertgen, a former University of Michigan soccer player, worked as an analyst at asset management firm Locust Point Capital.
Matthew, who played soccer at Wesleyan University, had a 2017 DUI conviction but no other criminal record before the alleged killing.
“It’s incredibly tragic,” a law enforcement source told The New York Post. “They seemed like the perfect all-American family. No one could have seen this coming.”
An official autopsy will determine Joseph Hertgen’s exact cause of death as the investigation continues.
