Man charged with fatal stabbing at bar in Windom sentenced to 15 years in prison

A man who fatally stabbed another person at a bar in Windom on New Year’s Eve has learned his prison sentence.

On Friday, a Cottonwood County court sentenced a California man who legally changed his name to “No Name Given” as his first name and “Happy” as his last name to 15 years in prison — 180 months for second-degree murder and a concurrent 18 months for threats of violence.

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According to court records, on Dec. 31, an employee at the Phat Pheasant Pub told officials that Happy was playing pool with a group of people when he reportedly started causing problems. Happy was escorted out of the bar after he was told to leave by one of the bartenders.

Witnesses said they saw Happy walk towards his semi-truck and then walk back into the bar with a knife. Court records say that a man, later identified as Ben Matter, went to stop him, and Happy “made a couple of stab motions” before he was punched by another person in the bar.

When officers arrived at the bar, they found Matter on the ground with stab wounds to the chest and abdomen.

Happy was being held down by other people in the bar, according to the criminal complaint. He was arrested, and a hunting-style knife with blood on it was collected by law enforcement.

Matter was brought to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly after.

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“I am pleased to see justice served in this case, and I hope that brings some measure of solace to all those affected by this tragic violence,” said Attorney General Keith Ellison. “I worked for years to expand my office’s Criminal Division so we could take on cases like this and help improve public safety across Minnesota. My Office stands ready to assist Minnesota’s county attorneys in securing justice and holding violent offenders accountable for their actions.”
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