Family thinks sentence too light for Beachy Stout’s son

Claiming that her family in Portland underwent approximately three years of emotional stress, Sasha Huslin, cousin to murder victim Andreen McDonald, has expressed shock at the manslaughter verdict for her killer Andre McDonald.

McDonald was sentenced to 20 years for killing his wife Andreen in 2019 in the US, following what is believed to be an argument over a business deal. He is the son of incarcerated businessman Everton 'Beachy Stout' McDonald, who is awaiting trial for the murder of his two wives in Portland.

But while the younger McDonald was found guilty last week by a jury that deliberated for 12 hours, Huslin told THE STAR on Tuesday that she believes justice was not served. She cited that the murder and burning of the body of her beloved cousin warranted a charge of murder.

"My aunts and other family members were expecting that he would have been found guilty for first degree murder on the basis of what he did to his wife. She was killed and her body burned beyond recognition," said Huslin, who was also overcome with emotion. She recounted that relatives became suspicious after Andreen failed to honour a business appointment on February 28, 2019. She also failed to turn up for work that day, which was unusual. Just about everyone who knew became overly concerned that something had gone wrong.

"It wasn't until sometime in July 2019 that the police in the US were able to put the pieces together and her remains were later found. It was like a nightmare for us as family members, because up until that point, we were still hoping that she would turn up alive. Her 12-year-old daughter is now without a mother and she will grow up knowing that her mother was murdered by her father. I knew Andre and there was no sign that he was a violent person. So this also comes to us as family members, as shock," said Huslin.

"He was a quiet person and we never expected that he would hurt her in this way and that was rather shocking. Andreen and I were very close and we used to chat a lot on the phone and at no time did I pick up that anything was wrong in their marriage. She did not deserve to go out in this manner, especially at the hands of her husband who is supposed to protect her," she added. Andreen was 29, while Andre is a 43-year-old major in the US Air Force.

According to Huslin, the family will continue to hurt for a long time, as Andreen was the kind of person who positively impacted many lives. She said that at the time of her death, she was catering for homeless people in her home town of San Antonio, Texas.

"Just about everyone in Portland who knew her liked her a lot. I am so sorry for Andre and I am just hoping that he will realise that he did a wicked thing and that he seeks forgiveness from his maker. As family members, we had expected that he would be given the life sentence, so in some way the US justice system failed us. We are trying to pull together as a family, but it is not easy and her memory will live on," Huslin said.