His Step-Grandfather Asked Him To Move Out. So, He Grabbed An Ax And Murdered The 87-Year-Old Victim.

A man was asked to move out of a Wisconsin home by his step-grandfather. He returned later and murdered the 87-year-old man and injured two others.

Now, he faces decades behind bars.

Recently, a jury in Monroe County, Wisconsin, convicted Thomas Aspseter, 38, of first-degree intentional homicide, two counts of attempted first-degree intentional homicide and two counts of aggravated battery involving a dangerous weapon, according to the Associated Press.

Aspseter is set for sentencing at a later date and faces up to life in prison.

In June 2021, 87-year-old Bernard Waite was killed in an attack at his Sparta, Wisconsin, home, according to the AP. Waite’s brother and sister-in-law were also injured in the incident.

Investigators said Aspseter had previously lived at Waite’s home but had been asked to leave, according to the AP. Waites returned home after a trip and found Aspseter on the property.

Waite again told his step-grandson to leave. A short time later, Aspseter attacked the three with an ax.

Aspseter then shot himself in the throat with a rifle and called 911 to confess to the killing, according to the AP.

During the trial, Aspseter took the stand on his own behalf. He claimed the elderly man had baited him into the attack as he threatened to call police if Aspseter did not leave.

“I hit him more than once with the axe, the first time not as hard the second time quite hard,” Aspseter said, according to WKBT.

During cross-examination, Aspseter admitted he entered the home without a key, WKBT noted. He also backed up the prosecution’s question that the 87-year-old, 128-pound man had baited him into a fight.

“Yeah, he popped me in the chin and I grabbed an axe and I hit him with it in the face,” Aspseter said, according to WKBT.