(CENTREVILLE) – A Sturgis man has been sentenced in connection with the 2019 murder of his girlfriend.

St. Joseph County Circuit Court officials say 39 year old Wade Allen was sentenced to serve 37 ½ to 60 years for the May 2019 death of Kelly Jean Warner. Allen had plead no contest to second degree murder and attempted dismemberment in Warner’s death.

Allen was also sentenced to 3 to 5 years after pleading no contest to third degree attempted criminal sexual conduct for attacking his cell mate in the St. Joseph County Jail on October 7, 2020. He was given credit for 1,470 days served.

During a 911 call on May 22, 2019, an anonymous tip was given, saying a man was keeping a woman’s body in his apartment, located in the 200 block of North Maple Street. The Sturgis Department of Public Safety arrived at 11:10 PM and were initially denied access to the apartment. Officers were finally given permission to search the apartment without a warrant, and found Warner’s body, which had been dismembered and put into a cooler.

It was determined that Warner died approximately two weeks before she was found.

Allen’s attorney argued that the search of his apartment should not have been allowed because there was no warrant. The Michigan Court of Appeals in 2021 ruled that a warrant would have been issued and Warner’s body found.

The case was prosecuted by the Michigan Attorney General’s office.