A Montana man was convicted in a gruesome 2024 campsite killing in which he hacked a stranger to bits, leaving authorities to assume that the victim was torn apart by a wild bear.

Daren Christopher Abbey , 42, was convicted of deliberate homicide for the slaughter of Dustin Kjersem , a 35-year-old father he shared a campsite with near Montana’s Big Sky in October 2024.

“This verdict reflects our community’s expectation that violent acts resulting in the loss of life will be met with accountability,” Gallatin County Attorney Audrey Cromwell said in a statement.

During the initial investigation, law enforcement officials said that Kjersem and Abbey were strangers who met by chance. Abbey later confessed that Kjersem welcomed him into the remote campsite near Moose Creek Road and that t

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