He killed Portland’s beloved Kimchi entrepreneur hours after his birthday celebration.
Then, he claimed he had mental illness.
Last week, a Multnomah County Circuit judge handed Allen Coe, 31, a life term in prison for the stabbing death of Matthew Choi. The sentence came after Coe pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, attempted murder, and burglary.
During the wee hours of Oct. 25, 2021, officers responded to a home invasion call at a Southeast Portland apartment building where Choi was found with multiple stab wounds.
According to investigators, a couple of hours earlier, the victim had been celebrating his 33rd birthday with friends. Later, Choi and his girlfriend, Jenny Kwon, retired for the night in his apartment after the party. Then, Kwon became startled after hearing Choi’s apartment door close gently before seeing a figure dashing towards the bathroom. Afraid, she woke up Choi, who had been sleeping on a couch close by, and alerted the intruder she was on her phone calling 911.
As a result, the victim and Coe got into a violent altercation as Choi grabbed the defendant from the back before being stabbed multiple times. Coe fled the scene while authorities rushed the victim to Legacy Emmanuel Medical Center, where he later succumbed to his wounds. Kwon was unhurt.
An autopsy report showed the cause of death was due to multiple stab wounds to the chest.
After a thorough search of the premises, investigators found a green backpack containing stolen social security cards in an adjoining trash room for the building. In addition, surveillance video footage showed the defendant carrying the green backpack in the complex on the night of the incident. Though Coe was also a resident of the same apartment complex, he could not provide investigators with a logical explanation for the backpack’s location next to the crime scene.
Furthermore, investigators gathered DNA from Coe’s saliva, which he spat on the sidewalk while being interviewed initially. Later, the defendant’s DNA was detected on Choi’s hands.
“There was no other DNA detected from any other person. Investigators have no explanation other than a homicidal attack to explain why the defendant’s DNA is on both of Matthew Choi’s hands,” said prosecutors, according to Willamette Week.
Family members and friends described Choi as a hard-working man whose Kimchi became a sensation among Portland’s supermarket chain and the Pacific Northwest. He was the co-founder of Choi’s Kimchi.
Coe apologized during his sentencing hearing and claimed he suffered from mental illness and drug addiction.
“I’m just a man who lost his way,” said Coe, reported Eater.
He will be eligible for parole after serving 25 years in prison.
