Tyler Aho, former roommate of slain MSU student Andrew Singler, demonstrates to the jury how alleged murderer Connor McCowan approached the door on the night Singler was killed last February. The trial began Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2013 with opening statements and witness testimony. Danyelle Morrow/The State News
A former roommate of slain MSU student Andrew Singler testified in the trial of alleged murderer Connor McCowan on Tuesday morning, giving his account of what happened the night Singler died.
Tyler Aho, 25, who lived with Singler and Connor McCowan’s sister Shay McCowan last spring, testified he gave Singler a ride home at about 3 a.m. that morning before returning to work.
When he came home from work around 3:45, he told the court he did not know Singler was there until he saw him walk to the front door, where the physical altercation began.
In earlier testimony, Shay McCowan had texted her brother that night and told him Singler had broken her back and ribs, but later sent a text indicating she was all right. Aho said the couple frequently argued about “stupid things.”
Connor McCowan allegedly drove early that morning to Singler’s apartment at Castle Point Apartments in Meridian Township to confront him. According to Ingham County Assistant Prosecutor John DeWayne, Connor McCowan and Singler had exchanged a series of profane text messages before McCowan arrived.
When Aho buzzed McCowan into the apartment, unaware of who it was, he said Singler walked quickly to the door “with purpose.” He said he stepped in between the two when Singler lunged at him, seeing Singler punch Connor McCowan in the face and seeing McCowan with a knife in his right hand.
Aho said Connor McCowan then stabbed Singler in an upward motion in the chest between two and five times. He said Singler “fell into the wall, screaming in pain.”
Connor McCowan is charged with open murder, meaning he later could face either first or second-degree murder. His trial, taking place in Ingham County Circuit court, could last up to two weeks.
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