A man with the unusual name “No Name Given Happy” is behind bars in Minnesota after police say he killed another man during a New Year’s Eve bar fight. The incident happened late at night on December 31 at the Phat Pheasant Pub in Windom, a small town about 140 miles southwest of Minneapolis.
According to police reports, things started to heat up when Happy was playing pool with a group of people at the bar. Witnesses described him as acting cocky and argumentative, which frustrated others in the group. They tried to stay calm but eventually told bartenders that Happy was being too aggressive.
At one point, Happy stepped outside to grab his jacket. A bar employee said they overheard him mention something about a gun and “getting 12 wounds to the face,” though it wasn’t clear what he meant. When he came back inside, the bartenders decided they’d had enough and asked him to leave. Regulars escorted him out.
But Happy didn’t go quietly. Witnesses say he went to his semitruck, grabbed a knife with a 6- to 8-inch blade, and came back toward the bar. That’s when things turned deadly. Thirty-year-old Ben Matter tried to stop Happy and push him back outside. Witnesses say Happy stabbed Matter several times before the victim collapsed. Other patrons jumped in, wrestled the knife away from Happy, and held him down until police arrived.
When officers got to the scene, they found Matter with stab wounds to his chest, lung area, and abdomen. Paramedics rushed him to the hospital, but tragically, doctors couldn’t save him, and he was pronounced dead shortly after midnight on January 1. Another person was also stabbed but survived and was treated at the hospital.
Police found a bloodied hunting knife and searched Happy’s semitruck, where they discovered a California commercial driver’s license with the name “No Name Given Happy.” Records also show he has used the alias “George Samuel” and is originally from San Diego. Happy is now in the Cottonwood County Jail, facing charges of second-degree murder, assault with a dangerous weapon, and making violent threats. His bond has been set at $750,000.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to support Ben Matter’s family. The page describes him as a loving father of two who was always generous, hardworking, and full of life. His family and friends are heartbroken by his loss, remembering him as someone who would do anything for anyone.