Patient Charged with Second-Degree Murder After Beating Hospital Security Guard to Death in Minnesota

On December 25, 2025, a patient receiving treatment at M Health Fairview Lakes Hospital in Wyoming, Minnesota, was charged with second-degree murder.

The victim was Andrea Merrell, a 43-year-old security guard employed at the hospital, who was beaten to death during the incident. The assailant, identified as Jonathan Winch, 35, had been placed under a medical hold for mental health reasons at the facility.

Despite this, he was able to leave the hospital premises and carry out the fatal attack on the security guard. Winch was apprehended at the scene by law enforcement after he resisted arrest. He is currently being held on $2 million bail as he awaits a formal mental health evaluation.

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