Federal Prison Inmate Sentenced to Life Term for Murdering Fellow Inmate Due to His Religious Faith

ROCKFORD — An inmate at Thomson Penitentiary in Thomson, Ill., has been sentenced to a life term of imprisonment after being convicted of murder and hate crime in the death of a fellow inmate.

BRANDON SIMONSON conspired with a co-defendant, KRISTOPHER MARTIN, to beat Matthew Phillips because Phillips was Jewish. Simonson and Martin assaulted Phillips to gain recognition and membership into a white supremacist antisemitic prison gang called the Valhalla Bound Skinheads.  Simonson punched and kicked Phillips in the face and head, despite Phillips being knocked unconscious and unable to defend himself. The assault occurred on March 2, 2020, leading to Phillips’ death three days later. 

A jury in U.S. District Court in Rockford earlier this year convicted Simonson 41, of Moorhead, Minn., of second-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, hate crime, and assault.  On Friday, U.S. District Judge Iain D. Johnston sentenced Simonson to life in federal prison.

Martin, 43, of Brazil, Ind., pleaded guilty earlier this year and will be sentenced on Oct. 9, 2025.

Simonson’s sentence was announced by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Lucas Rothaar, Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI.  Valuable assistance was provided by the Federal Bureau of Prisons.  The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Vincenza L. Tomlinson and Ronald DeWald.

“Antisemitic violence has no place in our society,” said U.S. Attorney Boutros.  “Violence against people of faith is illegal and unacceptable and will not be tolerated anywhere in our district, including in our prison system.  My Office and our law enforcement partners will aggressively enforce federal laws to ensure that all Americans feel safe in practicing and expressing their faith.”

“The FBI and our law enforcement partners hold those who compromise the safety or lives of others accountable, even those serving sentences in prison,” said FBI ASAC Rothaar.  “We continue to ask the public to help keep our communities safe from any acts of violence like those detailed in this case by reporting threatening or suspicious behavior immediately to local law enforcement or the FBI.”