Perham Murder Victims’ Neighbor Discusses Interaction With Suspect

21-year-old William Hillman will undergo a 60-day psych evaluation

OTTER TAIL COUNTY, Minn. — 21–year–old William Hillman of Pine River is accused of murdering a 42–year–old Denise Mcfadzen and her son, 22–year–old Dalton Mcfadzen in rural Perham.

“What happened over there at the Mcfadzen’s, that’s terrible. That’s just totally horrific and I wouldn’t wish that on anybody,” said Peggy Jay, one of the Mcfadzens’ neighbors.

Police arrived to the Mcfadzen home around 5:30 on the morning of April 17. They found Denise lying on the front steps with blunt force trauma to her head. Once inside the home, they found Dalton lying on a bed with blunt force trauma to his head as well.

Hillman is accused of killing both them with a pipe wrench. He then went to a nearby residence, where Jay and her husband live.

“He just said he needed to call 911. I said do the people next door, do they need help? Do I need to go over there? He said you don’t want to go over there,” Jay said.

When deputies took Hillman into custody, he had blood all over his clothes and skin.

They also found a large pipe wrench covered in blood.

Neighbors who watched the whole thing say Hillman cooperated with the deputies.

“You’d think somebody that did something wrong, you know they fight and everything like you see them on T.V. There was no fight in this kid,” Jay said.

When Hillman made his first court appearance this morning, his attorney asked that a psych evaluation be done under two different motions.

“Rule 20–01 concerns his competency to proceed and work with an attorney during the dependency of the matter. But there’s also a rule 20–02 which is about whether somebody was competent at the time they committed the offense,” said Michelle Eldien, assistant Ottertail County attorney.

Hillman will be sent to St. Peter Regional Treatment Center for a 60–day evaluation. Court records show he spent time at St. Peter from April 2016 to November 2017 for assaulting his mother. He was diagnosed with schizophrenia at the hospital and was found incompetent to stand trial.

Hillman took medication for his illness but told officers he stopped taking it five months ago. He had been living with the Mcfadzen’s for the last month and a half.

Neighbors say if Hillman is found incompetent this time, they just hope he gets the help he needs.

“I would say this kid needs some drastic help, he needs supervision and meds. He needs someone who’s not going to give up on him once he turns into an adult,” Jay said.

Hillman’s bail is set for $2 million. If he is found competent to stand trial and guilty on both charges, he could be in prison for up to 80 years.