Man sentenced in probation case; faces murder charge


SPECIAL TO THE VINDICATOR

MERCER, Pa. — Michael V. Matter, 52, who is charged with murder in the death of Howard Urquhart, 60, of Hempfield Township, was sentenced Friday in Mercer County Common Pleas Court for a probation violation.

Judge John Reed sentenced the former Greenville resident to four to 12 months in the Mercer County Jail.

Matter was placed on probation in March 2006 for misdemeanor harassment. Court documents state that during a domestic incident in 2005, he pushed a woman up against a wall and threw her to the floor, causing minor injuries to her hip, knee and elbow.

He also told her, “I could kill you right now if I wanted to.”

On Jan. 23, 2008, he was picked up in North Carolina for a probation violation hearing and returned here Jan. 30. His probation was revoked Feb. 14 when the court found he had left the area without permission while on probation.

Urquhart was reported missing Jan. 17 and his body was found Feb. 20 in a wooded area of Greene Township. An autopsy report said he died from a gunshot wound to the back of his neck.

According to the affidavit, Matter had Urquhart’s truck when apprehended and Urquhart’s credit card was used in January in North Carolina, Virginia and Washington, Pa.

Matter is scheduled for a preliminary hearing at 9:45 a.m. May 8 in the office of District Justice William Fagley in Greenville.

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