Oregon man who murdered woman, then cashed her winning lottery ticket, given life in prison
Jason David Perillo pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the death of Catherine Grace Crosse on New Year's Eve 2024
An Oregon man, accused by prosecutors of stabbing a woman about 30 times before cashing in her winning lottery ticket days after her death, has been sentenced to life in prison.
Jason David Perillo, 51, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the death of Catherine Grace Crosse, 41, and was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 25 years, according to a news release from the Clackamas County Prosecutor's Office.
Prosecutors alleged that Perillo murdered Crosse inside the motorhome she shared with a companion on New Year's Eve 2024. According to the statement, the woman suffered approximately 30 stab wounds, many of them in the head and neck.
According to prosecutors, Crosse and his companion made a living selling small amounts of fentanyl and cocaine. Prosecutors alleged that Perillo was one of his clients and that he went to the motorhome on December 31, 2024 to buy drugs.
Phone records and surveillance recordings cited by prosecutors showed that Crosse was alive when Perillo entered the motorhome; Two hours later, he left alone with objects stolen from inside.
Later that day, when Crosse's calls and texts went unanswered, his companion asked a friend to come check on him. Said friend found her dead and called 911, according to the prosecution.
According to the statement, text messages exchanged shortly before Crosse's death showed her and her companion talking about how they planned to spend the $6,750 they had accumulated.
Investigators indicated that they did not find the cash during the search of the motorhome. They also determined that a $400 lottery ticket that Crosse had won days earlier but had not yet redeemed was missing.
According to prosecutors, Perillo, who had no stable or reliable source of income, purchased a pickup truck for $2,000 shortly after the murder and gave another $1,000 to his wife.
According to the release, investigators also discovered that he cashed in Crosse's winning lottery ticket four days after her death.

