Trenton Adams: Texas man sentenced to life in prison for brutally killing friend with hammer
ELLIS COUNTY, TEXAS: An Ellis County man from Texas was sentenced to life in prison without parole for killing his friend with a hammer back in 2021, as per Focus Daily News
31-year-old Trenton Adams of Avalon, Texas, was found guilty of capital murder by a jury that sentenced him this week.
What did Trenton Adams do?
Trenton Adams killed his 29-year-old friend, Jordan Von Hoffman, who was found dead inside a trash can, wrapped in plastic, a tarp and covered in paint in March 2021.
Von Hoffman died, according to the Dallas County Medical Examiner, due to blunt force trauma consistent with being struck in the skull with a hammer, and compression of his neck. Gloves and a bloodied hammer were also found in the trash can where Hoffman's body was discovered.
Investigators found items in the trailer and trash cans that were purchased by Von Hoffman from Home Depot. On the morning of Von Hoffman's murder, Adams and another individual were seen on surveillance footage purchasing trash cans, paint, plastic, gloves, and other items, according to the investigators, per Fox 4 News .
Tests showed Adams' DNA was inside the gloves and on the hammer. Phone and Facebook records show that Adams and the other person had reached out to Von Hoffman, telling him to come over that day, investigators said.
'This was extraordinally brutal crime'
Adams was on the run after the Ellis County Sheriff's Office secured an arrest warrant for him. He stayed in San Marcos and Fort Worth before being apprehended in Houston. Investigators claim that while he was evading capture, he made many confession calls to dispatch.
Additionally, Adams claimed on Facebook that Von Hoffman had harmed a child, a claim that Ellis County detectives found to be untrue. Later on, he made several further changes to his story. He claimed that a South American cartel had killed Von Hoffman and made him move his body.
Later, Adams sent a letter to Ellis County and the District Attorney's Office in which he admitted to killing Von Hoffman saying he "worships death" and that he carries out "rites and rituals of Satanic worship, including blood sacrifices", the DA's office said.
Additionally, according to the District Attorney's Office, Adams also believed that Von Hoffman had a sexual encounter with his girlfriend.
"This was an extraordinarily brutal crime," said Ellis County District Attorney Ann Montgomery in a statement, adding, "I am pleased that justice was served for Jordan and his family. I am also thankful that Trenton Adams will never walk freely in Texas again."
