The preppy Princeton murder suspect accused of ripping out his little brother’s eyeball after beating and slashing him to death tried to kill himself inside his jail cell Thursday night, a law enforcement source told The Post Friday.
Matthew Hertgen, 31 — who wore a suicide vest during a virtual court appearance earlier in the day — tried to hang himself at Mercer County Correction Center where he’s being held on murder charges for the gruesome slay.
Hertgen allegedly beat and stabbed his 26-year-old brother, Joseph, to death with a golf club and a knife in their family’s luxury apartment Saturday night.
He is also accused of setting the family cat on fire, tearing out his brother’s eyeball and eating it, police sources said.
He faces 30 years to life in prison if convicted of the heinous fratricide.
The twisted rampage – which has stunned those who knew the well-heeled family – came months after the accused cannibal killer posted chilling poems on Facebook that described blood oozing out of eyes and “knives sharpening.”
Hertgen also took a selfie with a cat toy a day before the vicious slaughter.
The brothers, in addition to their eldest sibling, were standout athletes who grew up in a $1.1 million home in Toms River before the family uprooted to a ritzy location in Princeton.
The murder happened Saturday night at the family home in Michelle Mews apartments – a prime location in the college town, where units can run for up to $2 million.
Officers discovered the grisly scene when the alleged murderer called the cops to report a dead body and fire inside the upscale home off Witherspoon Street.
A bloody knife, fork and plate were found near the victim’s body, a source said, which led cops to believe Hertgen consumed the missing organ.
A motive behind the alleged killer’s spiral into homicidal madness remains unknown.
Joseph’s funeral will be held Saturday morning at St. Luke Roman Catholic Church in Toms River, according to his obituary.
He will be buried at Saint Gabriel’s Cemetery and Mausoleum in Marlboro.
Hertgen is due back in Mercer County Superior Court on March 6.
If you are struggling with suicidal thoughts or are experiencing a mental health crisis and live in New York City, you can call 1-888-NYC-WELL for free and confidential crisis counseling. If you live outside the five boroughs, you can dial the 24/7 National Suicide Prevention hotline at 988 or go to SuicidePreventionLifeline.org.
