How a beer can helped police crack killing of camper initially thought to be a bear attack

The suspect and the victim reportedly had no prior connection before the killing

Daren Christopher Abbey, 41, was arrested and charged with the killing of Dustin Kjersem, a Montana camper who was found brutally killed in a tent on October 12, 2024 (Montana Department of Corrections)

A Montana man has been charged with the brutal murder of a camper that was initially reported as a bear attack after DNA evidence collected from a beer can pointed police in his direction.

Daren Christopher Abbey, 41, of Basin, Montana, has been charged with the deliberate killing of Dustin Kjersem, police announced during a Thursday news conference.

Gallatin County Sheriff Dan Springer said Abbey confessed to the killing once investigators focused on him as their primary suspect in Kjersem's death, ABC News reports.

Investigators began to hone in on Abbey after they found DNA that matched his on a beer can inside Kjersem's tent.

Police said the killing appeared to be random.

"There does not appear to be any connection between our victim and our suspect," Springer said.

He said the men had a "chance encounter" in the woods while Abbey was looking for a camp site.

Dustin Kjersem, 35, was killed in a brutal attack while he was camping near Big Sky, Montana, in October 2024 (Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office handout)

One of Kjersem's friends was scheduled to meet up with him on the night of his death. He set off in search for Kjersem when he didn't show up, before making the gruesome discovery in the Moose Creek area.

When the friend called 911 to report the death, he told a dispatcher he believed his friend was killed by a bear.

However, when investigators — including wildlife officials — searched the site, they found no evidence of bear activity at the camp, leading them to believe a human had to be responsible.

Abbey was reportedly in the area on the same night and was looking for a camp site, and found that Kjersem had already set up a tent on the patch he had been considering.

He reportedly told investigators that Kjersem "welcomed him to the campsite" and offered him a beer.

Investigators said that Abbey at some point in the evening hit Kjersem with a piece of wood, stabbed him in the neck with a screwdriver, and then chopped him with an ax.

Police are still trying to determine a motive for the attack.

"We have a bit of his story, but … we don't really know what the true story is," Springer said.

Abbey allegedly returned to the crime scene later to remove items from the camp he thought might tie him to the murder, but overlooked the beer can.

An autopsy found that Kjersem's injuries included "significant damage" to his skull and that he died from multiple wounds caused by Abbey's attack.