A couple from Milwaukee has been charged in the 2019 stabbing death of an Onalaska man in West Allis

The September 2019 stabbing death of a 33-year-old man in West Allis occurred during an altercation that started over a comment made about bicycles, according to investigators.

Angel Monge-Mathuzima, 31, and Shirley L. Monge, 32, a husband and wife from Milwaukee, have been charged in connection with the death of Ryan Sorensen of Onalaska, who died from a stab wound to the chest, according to a criminal complaint filed Aug. 1 in Milwaukee County Circuit Court.

The couple was charged with being party to a crime of felony murder-battery, and face up to nearly 12 years in prison if convicted. 

According to the complaint:

Shortly before 2 a.m. on Sept. 15, 2019, Sorensen was walking with two friends in the 2000 block of South 71st Street when the group was passed by a man and a woman riding bikes and Sorensen joked about wanting the bikes.

This angered the woman, later identified as Shirley Monge, who repeatedly circled back on her bike, maintaining contact with the trio and speaking angrily to Sorensen. 

As they neared 2049 S. 71st St., Monge approached Sorensen closely while on her bike, possibly to ram him, then fell or was knocked off her bike. She then stuck her cellphone in his face.

Sorensen knocked the phone away, and Monge jumped on Sorensen and began swinging at him. Monge-Mathuzima also began fighting with Sorensen. 

Eventually, Sorensen's companions pulled the two off of Sorensen and the couple fled on their bikes. A short time later they realized Sorensen had been stabbed. 

A sample of blood collected by police at the scene was submitted to the Wisconsin State Crime Lab for analysis and testing determined the DNA was a match for Monge-Mathuzima. 

Further investigation revealed that on the date of the crime, according to utility billing records, Monge-Mathuzima lived about two blocks from where the stabbing took place.  

West Allis police arrested Monge and Monge-Mathuzima on July 28. Cash bond for each has been set at $25,000. 

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Aug. 11. 

Following the crime, West Allis police asked for the public's help and initially offered a $2,000 reward for information about the suspects. The reward was later increased to $10,000. 

West Allis Deputy Police Chief Chris Marks said there are no plans to disburse the reward.

Contact Bob Dohr at 262-361-9140 or bob.dohr@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @BobDohr1.