A Missouri man pleaded guilty earlier this month to stabbing his estranged wife to death during an argument in the Ozark National Scenic Riverways in 2020.
Dylan Hanger, 30, was initially charged in Texas County but was later indicted in federal court since the park land is under federal jurisdiction, the Springfield News-Leader reported.
Court documents say Hanger and his estranged wife, 29-year-old Brittany Gorman, met at the Buck Hollow Access Area along the Jacks Fork River in May 2020. The two argued about their children and a government stimulus check, the documents say, and Hanger stabbed Gorman several times in the chest.
After Gorman was reported missing, investigators found her vehicle. Her eyeglasses were inside along with pools of blood by the driver’s side door.
Hanger initially denied knowing anything about Gorman’s disappearance but later admitted they had a physical fight and she was killed. He told investigators that he put her body in his car and dumped it in the Mark Twain National Forest.
Hanger was initially indicted on second degree murder and interstate domestic violence charges. He pleaded guilty to second degree murder and will be sentenced at a hearing later on.
He faces the possibility of life in prison.
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[Featured image: Brittany Gorman/National Park Service]