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DNA Evidence

Former Upper Darby Principal Who Raped NJ Woman In 2014 Home Invasion Sentenced: Prosecutors Former Upper Darby Principal Who Raped NJ Woman In 2014 Home Invasion Sentenced: Prosecutors
Former Upper Darby Principal Who Raped NJ Woman In 2014 Home Invasion Sentenced: Prosecutors A former school principal will spend more than four decades in prison for raping a Woodbridge Township woman during a home invasion 10 years ago, authorities said. Danny McEaddy, 40, was sentenced on Wednesday, Sept. 18 to 50 years in state prison, a Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office spokesperson said. A jury found the Sicklerville man guilty on seven counts on Thursday, Apr. 18. Prosecutors said a woman reported that an unknown man broke into her apartment in the Keasbey section of Woodbridge and sexually assaulted her in September 2014. DNA samples at the crime scene identifi…
'Violent Predator' Gets Life For Killing Bucks County Co-Worker, Dumping Body In MD 'Violent Predator' Gets Life For Killing Bucks County Co-Worker, Dumping Body In MD
'Violent Predator' Gets Life For Killing Bucks County Co-Worker, Dumping Body In MD A man described by authorities as a "violent predator" was sentenced to life in prison without parole on Monday, Sept. 9 for kidnapping, robbing, and killing a Pennsylvania co-worker, authorities announced. Michael Allen Stark, 50, of Royersford, PA was found guilty by a Bucks County jury of first-degree murder, second-degree murder, robbery, kidnapping, theft by unlawful taking, flight to avoid apprehension, and abuse of a corpse, according to District Attorney Jennifer Schorn and court records. Stark's victim was 50-year-old Matthew James Branning of Sellersville, who went missing after l…
Federal Court Overturns Life Sentence, Murder Conviction Of PA Man Federal Court Overturns Life Sentence, Murder Conviction Of PA Man
Federal Court Overturns Life Sentence, Murder Conviction Of PA Man A man serving a life sentence following a murder conviction has had his conviction overturned, the Lebanon County District Attorney's Office announced on Thursday, Sept. 5.  Eddie Williams, 50, of Lebanon, had been convicted of murder in the first degree, robbery, and numerous related offenses on Oct. 14, 2015, the DA explained.  An order granting Williams's petition for a writ of habeas corpus was affirmed in federal court on Aug. 13, 2024, according to federal court documents obtained by Daily Voice. The case was remanded with instructions that the District Court order Williams'…
Accused Killer To Stand Trial For Bucks Man's Stabbing Death: DA Accused Killer To Stand Trial For Bucks Man's Stabbing Death: DA
Accused Killer To Stand Trial For Bucks Man's Stabbing Death: DA The Philadelphia woman charged with murdering 72-year-old Richard MacFarland will stand trial, the Bucks County District Attorney's Office announced Thursday, July 18.  Meghan Macklin, 46, is accused of stabbing MacFarland to death in his Wrightstown home last Oct. 7, authorities said previously. She was arrested in Tennessee that night after allegedly fleeing Pennsylvania in MacFarland's car, prosecutors said.  In a preliminary hearing on Thursday, authorities presented video evidence, photos, and testimony from police to show that Macklin and MacFarland had a "friendly…
Child Foot Porn Made By Lancaster Babysitter Charged In Multiple Abuse Cases: DA Child Foot Porn Made By Lancaster Babysitter Charged In Multiple Abuse Cases: DA
Child Foot Porn Made By Lancaster Babysitter Charged In Multiple Abuse Cases: DA Photographs found on a former babysitter's computers (following a warranted search of his home) have led Pennsylvania State Police to identify yet another victim he abused, according to a release Lancaster County District Attorney's Office announced on Monday, Jan. 23.  Eric Dorwart, 54, of the 500 block of Pleasure Road in Manheim Township has been charged for the third time in a year for sexually assaulting children, the DA explained.  Originally, Dorwart was matched by DNA to the cold case assault of a boy and girl on West Newport Road, Gordonville, Leacock on April 4…
Infant Thrown Like 'Dog Poop' Out PA Window By CNA, Mom: Affidavit Infant Thrown Like 'Dog Poop' Out PA Window By CNA, Mom: Affidavit
Infant Thrown Like 'Dog Poop' Out PA Window By CNA, Mom: Affidavit A certified nursing assistant in Maryland and her boyfriend have been arrested for throwing their newborn son out an apartment window and attempting to cover up his death, Pennsylvania State Police troopers announced on Tuesday, June 25, and detailed in court documents obtained by Daily Voice.  Joshua Wooters, 19, and Emily Dickinson, 20, both of McConnellsburg, have been charged with felonies for criminal homicide and conspiracy, as well as misdemeanor counts of concealing the death of a child and abuse of a corpse, as stated in their court dockets.  The couple's arrests com…
COLD CASE: Philly Man Found Dead Off Turnpike In Lancaster County COLD CASE: Philly Man Found Dead Off Turnpike In Lancaster County
Cold CASE: Philly Man Found Dead Off Turnpike In Lancaster County State police investigators hope to shed new light on the 1991 murder of a West Philadelphia man.  Derek Michael Mason was last seen leaving his South 39th Street home in October of that year, according to troopers.  His remains were discovered off the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Clay Township, Lancaster County in January 1992. Authorities determined that he had been murdered, but it took until 2023 to identify him using DNA evidence, police say.  Mason was known by the nicknames "Hawkeye" and "Hawk." State police said there is an upcoming block party in Mason's old neighborhoo…
Man Guilty Of Raping Ex-GF's 8-Year-Old Daughter Repeatedly, Officials In Bucks County Say Man Guilty Of Raping Ex-GF's 8-Year-Old Daughter Repeatedly, Officials In Bucks County Say
Man Guilty Of Raping Ex-GF's 8-Year-Old Daughter Repeatedly, Officials In Bucks County Say While most girls her age were enjoying the end of the school year this week, a 12-year-old Pennsylvania girl was in court detailing rapes at the hands of her mother's 33-year-old ex-boyfriend, officials said. Because of the girl's bravery, Cory Hegelein, of Morrisville, Falls Township, was found guilty of rape of a child, statutory sexual assault, unlawful contact with a minor, aggravated indecent assault on a person less than 13 years old, indecent assault on a person less than 13 years of age, and corruption of minors, the Bucks County DA's Office announced Friday, June 14. Hegelein …
Carjacker Who Threatened To Inject Victims With Syringe Sentenced: Bucks DA Carjacker Who Threatened To Inject Victims With Syringe Sentenced: Bucks DA
Carjacker Who Threatened To Inject Victims With Syringe Sentenced: Bucks DA A convicted carjacker who brandished a syringe during a string of Bucks County thefts will spend up to two decades in prison, according to prosecutors.  The District Attorney's Office said Monday that Kevin O’Connell was sentenced to 11 to 25 years in prison. He previously pleaded no contest to multiple counts including robbery of a motor vehicle and terroristic threats, authorities said.  Investigators have said O'Connell stole an elderly woman's 2007 Toyota Camry in Bristol Borough in August 2022.  Prosecutors said the victim was walking back to her car after an …
Bandana Left At Gas Station 14+ Years Ago Leads To Arrest: PA State Police Bandana Left At Gas Station 14+ Years Ago Leads To Arrest: PA State Police
Bandana Left At Gas Station 14+ Years Ago Leads To Arrest: PA State Police A 32-year-old man was charged and arrested with a robbery he allegedly committed in 2010 – all because of a bandana, Pennsylvania State Police announced on Wednesday, May 2, 2024.  Alexander Theodule Pelletier, of Williamsport, Lycoming County was arrested on April 30 in connection with a robbery at Shelocta BP convenience store along PA Route 422 in Armstrong Township, Indiana County, troopers explained in the release.  PSP Troop A patrol members and criminal investigators were called to the gas station at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 17, 2010, as detailed in the release.  …
Michigan Truckers Beat, Tied Up Bucks Comic Store Owner In 2022 Robbery: DA Michigan Truckers Beat, Tied Up Bucks Comic Store Owner In 2022 Robbery: DA
Michigan Truckers Beat, Tied Up Bucks Comic Store Owner In 2022 Robbery: DA A pair of Michigan truck drivers are in custody for violently robbing a Feasterville comic book store in 2022, according to the Bucks County District Attorney's Office.  Twenty-two-year-old Zackery Maximus Tucker of Quincy, Michigan and 35-year-old Caleb James-Lorenze Simpson of Clarklake, Michigan are each charged with robbery and related counts, prosecutors said.  Investigators believe the pair walked into Comic Collection, 83 Bustleton Pike, on Sept. 18, 2022, and pretended to be customers.  They asked the 61-year-old clerk to get an item from a high shelf, then knocked h…
Florida Man Wanted For Murder Commits Suicide In PA Prison: Authorities Florida Man Wanted For Murder Commits Suicide In PA Prison: Authorities
Florida Man Wanted For Murder Commits Suicide In PA Prison: Authorities A 21-year-old man wanted on murder charges in Florida took his own life in a Pennsylvania prison, authorities announced on Wednesday. Isaiah Xavier Mesadieu formerly of Hollywood, FL most recently of Harrisburg and Middletown, PA, died of asphyxiation by hanging in the York County Prison and was pronounced dead at 4:47 p.m., Jan. 23, according to the county coroner's office. Mesadieu was first arrested in Pennsylvania for a summary offense of harassment in Dauphin County, on June 21, 2023, court records show.  After pleading guilty on July 5, he was released but was arrested agai…
Infant Child Porn Among 2K+ Images Found On Manheim Man Also Charged In Cold Case: DA Infant Child Porn Among 2K+ Images Found On Manheim Man Also Charged In Cold Case: DA
Infant Child Porn Among 2K+ Images Found On Manheim Man Also Charged In Cold Case: DA A search warrant at the home of a man — charged in a cold case of sexual assault of two children — led the Pennsylvania State Police to over two thousand images of child pornography, the Lancaster County District Attorney's Office announced on Tuesday, Jan. 23.  Eric Dorwart, 54, of the 500 block of Pleasure Road in Manheim Township has been charged for the second time in three months for sexually assaulting children, the DA explained.  Dorwart was matched by DNA to the cold case assault of a boy and girl on West Newport Road, Gordonville, Leacock on April 4th, 1997, acc…
DUI Driver 'Had No Recollection' Of Double Fatal Crash Moments After It Happened: MontCo DA DUI Driver 'Had No Recollection' Of Double Fatal Crash Moments After It Happened: MontCo DA
Khaliym Smith Arrested In Double Fatal Crash An accused DUI driver has been arrested in connection with a crash that killed two women in Montgomery County early this year.  Khaliym Smith, 22, of Pottstown, was found standing outside his overturned Jeep Wrangler in Upper Providence around 2:30 a.m. on Feb 12, according to charging documents from the District Attorney's Office.  GIvonah Mitchell Facebook photo Maya Garner, 22, was found dead a short distance away, and GIvonah “Gigi” Mitchell, 23, was taken to Penn Presbyterian Hospital where she died from her injuries, authorities said.  The women, both of Philade…
Suspected Pennypack Park Slasher Has Links To Unsolved Rapes, Murder: Police Suspected Pennypack Park Slasher Has Links To Unsolved Rapes, Murder: Police
Suspected Pennypack Park Slasher Has Links To Unsolved Rapes, Murder: Police The man accused of attacking people with a machete in Pennypack Park has been linked to a string of unsolved rapes and one murder dating back to 2003, according to authorities.  Elias Diaz, 46, was arrested on the park trail on Sunday, Dec. 17, police said previously.  In a press conference on Tuesday, Dec. 19, Philadelphia police, District Attorney Larry Krasner, and FBI officials said Diaz's DNA was linked to evidence collected from the scenes of multiple sexual assaults in Fairmount Park from 2003.  He is also said to be linked to the July 13, 2003 murder of 30-year-…
DNA On Tie-Dye Towel Links PA Man To Assault Of Family Member, Police Say DNA On Tie-Dye Towel Links PA Man To Assault Of Family Member, Police Say
DNA On Tie-Dye Towel Links PA Man To Assault Of Family Member, Police Say A 38-year-old man has been charged after a towel linked him to months of sexual assaults with a young family member, police announced on Monday, Oct. 23.  Around 11:40 a.m. on May 21, 2023, a girl under the age of 16 and her mom reached out to the Lower Allen Township Police Department to inform them "that a family member, John Heinrich George II, had been sexually assaulting her for the last two months," as stated in the release.  The incidents happened in Camp Hill beginning on March 2, 2023, according to court documents.  During the girl's meeting with the police she "rev…
Nearly 50 Years Later Cold Case Killing Of Central PA Newly Wed Solved: DA Nearly 50 Years Later Cold Case Killing Of Central PA Newly Wed Solved: DA
Nearly 50 Years Later Cold Case Killing Of Central PA Newly Wed Solved: DA In 1975 a 19-year-old newlywed was brutally murdered, but thanks to DNA evidence her alleged killer has been revealed, Lancaster County District Attorney Heather Adams announced. Lancaster County's oldest cold case homicide was that of Lindy Sue Biechler whose "life was brutally taken away from her 46 years ago in the sanctity of her own home," DA Adams said.  David Vincent Sinopoli, now 69 of the 300 block of Faulkner Drive, pleaded guilty to third-degree murder, aggravated assault, and burglary in connection with Biechler's death on Thursday, Oct. 19.  His plea comes …
DNA On Coffee Cup Lid Matches Man To Child Sexual Assaults: PA State Police DNA On Coffee Cup Lid Matches Man To Child Sexual Assaults: PA State Police
DNA On Coffee Cup Lid Matches Man To Child Sexual Assaults: PA State Police A 54-year-old man is behind bars decades after he allegedly sexually assaulted two children— all thanks to a coffee cup, according to Pennsylvania State Police.  Eric Dorwart of Manheim was matched through DNA evidence to the sexual assault of two children under the age of 13, PSP on Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023.  The young boy and girl had been playing near their home on West Newport Road on April 4th, 1997, when the man in light blue work van with a ladder of the back approached them and sexually assaulted them, the police detailed in charging documents. The man left semen on the c…
Man Who Raped, Murdered 85-Year-Old Relative Not Sex Offender Man Who Raped, Murdered 85-Year-Old Relative Not Sex Offender
Man Who Raped, Murdered 85-Year-Old Relative Not Sex Offender Nearly 35 years after then-24-year-old Christopher Joseph Larry Speelman raped and murdered his 85-year-old relative, he has finally been sentenced— but he's not a sex offender, according to the court.  Now, 59, Speelman has been sentenced to spend the next 25 to 50 years in prison by Judge Thomas Campbell after pleading guilty to murder in the third degree, burglary, and a no contest to rape, according to Adams County District Attorney Brian Sinnett. Speelman confessed raping and then smothering Edna Laughman with a pillow at her home in the 1500 block of Carlisle Pike, Oxford Townsh…
DNA Evidence Leads To Montco Car Thief, Police Say DNA Evidence Leads To Montco Car Thief, Police Say
DNA Evidence Leads To Montco Car Thief, Police Say Investigators in Montgomery County say they tracked down a carjacker a year after the fact using DNA evidence obtained from the scene.  Jason Patrick Colfer, 44, of Philadelphia, is charged with theft and related counts, said Lower Moreland police in a release.  Authorities say Colfer stole a 2021 Mazda MX5 from a parking lot on Tomlinson Road in Huntingdon Valley last year on March 26. At the time, police reviewed security footage that showed a white man walking into the parking lot and peering around before hopping in the car and speeding off.  Suspect in the March 2022 Lower Morelan…
'Zombie Hunter' Who Beheaded PA Woman Sentenced To Death: DA 'Zombie Hunter' Who Beheaded PA Woman Sentenced To Death: DA
'Zombie Hunter' Who Beheaded PA Woman Sentenced To Death: DA An Amazon delivery driver by day and self-described "zombie hunter" at night has been sentenced to death.  Bryan Patrick Miller a 49-year-old Arizonan pleaded insanity with a lawyer who used a "Jekyll and Hyde" defense during a trial over the brutal stabbing and beheading deaths of two young women— including a 21-year-old from Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, according to Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell. Miller, also dubbed the "Canal Killer", was "found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder, dangerous class one felonies, two counts of kidnapping, class two dangero…
Ex-YMCA Employee Who Ditched Daughter In PA YMCA Dumpster Learns Her Fate: DA Ex-YMCA Employee Who Ditched Daughter In PA YMCA Dumpster Learns Her Fate: DA
Ex-ymca Employee Who Ditched Daughter In PA YMCA Dumpster Learns Her Fate: DA A former YMCA employee who ditched her daughter in the organization's dumpster in Lancaster in 2007 has been convicted and sentenced, the District Attorney announced on May 24, 2023.  DNA evidence linked Tara Indrakosit Brazzle, 44, of Valparaiso, Indiana (formerly of Lancaster, Pennsylvania) to the baby girl, according to the DA.  She was arrested in California in 2021 for "infanticide by asphyxiation," as Daily Voice previously reported.  "Baby Mary Ann", was 36 weeks old when she was found in the 500 block of North Queen Street in 2007, the DA explained.  Brazz…
Reading Man Charged With Rape: DA Reading Man Charged With Rape: DA
Reading Man Charged With Rape: DA A Reading man faces criminal charges in connection with a 2022 Shillington sexual assault, the Berks County District Attorney's Office announced.  Angel Vasquez, 28, was arrested Thursday, April 20, and booked on two counts each of rape, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, and aggravated indecent assault, prosecutors said.  The charges stem from a reported assault at a Shillington residence on May 26, 2022, authorities said. Investigators spoke with the alleged victim, 51, and performed a medical examination that revealed DNA evidence, according to the release.  "A labor…
Kohberger Victims, Roommate Were Reportedly Awake During Idaho Slayings: Affidavit Kohberger Victims, Roommate Were Reportedly Awake During Idaho Slayings: Affidavit
Kohberger Victims, Roommate Were Reportedly Awake During Idaho Slayings: Affidavit The probable cause affidavit in the quadruple murders of University of Idaho students was unsealed Thursday, Jan. 5 as prime suspect Bryan Kohberger appeared in court, suggesting that at least one of the victims and one surviving roommate were awake during the crimes. It was ultimately DNA on the button snap of a knife sheath that helped police identify the 28-year-old criminology PhD student as the suspect in the Nov. 13 killings of Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20, according to the affidavit published in NewsNationNow. The affidavi…
DNA Evidence Leads To Killer In 34-Year-Old Cold Case In Berks County DNA Evidence Leads To Killer In 34-Year-Old Cold Case In Berks County
DNA Evidence Leads To Killer In 34-Year-Old Cold Case In Berks County A now-deceased man has been identified as the suspect who killed a 26-year-old woman 34 years ago in Berks County, authorities said. With new advances in genetic genealogy, investigators were able to identify Scott Grim, who died of natural causes at the age of 58 in 2018, as the man who beat and strangled Anna Jean Kane to death and dumped her body alongside Ontelaunee Trail Road in Perry Township, Pennsylvania State Police said. She was last seen on Franklin Street and South 6th Street in Reading at around 1 a.m. Oct. 23, 1988, police said. The DNA evidence found on the Birdsboro wo…
Fugitive Dubbed 'Real-Life Tony Soprano' Couldn't Hide From The Law, Even In Death Fugitive Dubbed 'Real-Life Tony Soprano' Couldn't Hide From The Law, Even In Death
Fugitive Dubbed 'Real-Life Tony Soprano' Couldn't Hide From The Law, Even In Death He was considered one of the last of the old-time mobsters, a "real-life Tony Soprano" listed as one of New Jersey's most wanted fugitives. Even six feet under, though, Tony Mota couldn't evade his pursuers. After eluding capture for nearly 25 years for a gruesome murder committed in Hudson County, Anthony Mota was found buried in the country where he was born, the Dominican Republic. Mota had been collecting debts for high-level Colombian drug dealers in New York City when he and a group of accomplices abducted a Queens man on Dec. 13, 1997, authorities said. The victim, 38-year-old …
Fingerprint Helps ID Man Accused Of Raping Teen Girl Walking To School In Reading Fingerprint Helps ID Man Accused Of Raping Teen Girl Walking To School In Reading
Fingerprint Helps ID Man Accused Of Raping Teen Girl Walking To School In Reading A fingerprint was key in identifying and arresting a man who is now charged with the rape of a teenage girl at knifepoint in Reading, authorities said. The 14-year-old girl told police that she was walking to school on the 1200 block of Hill Road when she was abducted, taken to another location, and sexually assaulted twice, around 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, March 16, Reading Police Chief Richard Tornielli said. Thanks in part to a fingerprint, police identified the suspect as 38-year-old Sean Samuels, of Auburn, the chief said. DNA evidence is still pending. He was arrested on Tuesday, …
Cold Case Murderer Of 9 Year Old Girl Revealed: PA State Police Cold Case Murderer Of 9 Year Old Girl Revealed: PA State Police
Cold Case Murderer Of 9 Year Old Girl Revealed: PA State Police UPDATE: James Paul Forte, was identified as the killer based on DNA evidence on Thursday at a press conference held by Pennsylvania state police. Forte died of natural causes in May 1980, the police said at the conference. ORIGINAL: A 57-year-old cold case homicide in Luzerne County has been solved, according to Pennsylvania state police. Marise Ann Chiverella, 9, was found dead in a strip-mining pit near the Hazleton Airport on Mar. 18, 1964, authorities say. Chiverella had been sexually assaulted, physically abused, before she was murdered and left at the scene, according to police. Th…
Flawed DNA Test Gets Bergen Man Doing Life For Beating, Burning Woman, 70, New Trial Flawed DNA Test Gets Bergen Man Doing Life For Beating, Burning Woman, 70, New Trial
Flawed DNA Test Gets Bergen Man Doing Life For Beating, Burning Woman, 70, New Trial DNA evidence found under the fingernails of a 70-year-old Bergen County woman bludgeoned and burned in her home wasn’t reliable enough to convict a man who’s now serving a life sentence for her murder, a state appeals court ruled. Daniel Rochat, 46, of Wood-Ridge, has already been moved from New Jersey State Prison in Trenton to the Bergen County Jail in Hackensack in anticipation of a new trial following the Appellate Division ruling. He remains charged with various counts of murder and felony murder, as well as aggravated arson, desecrating human remains, burglary, hindering arrest and f…
Video Of Dinner Guest Kidnapping Hostess Before Raping Her In PA Hotel Released By DA Video Of Dinner Guest Kidnapping Hostess Before Raping Her In PA Hotel Released By DA
Video Of Dinner Guest Kidnapping Hostess Before Raping Her In PA Hotel Released By DA A night that started as a warm dinner party in Pennsylvania ended in a scene out of a horror movie for the hostess, who was kidnapped by her husband's friend, beaten unconscious, and raped at a hotel, authorities said. The 27-year-old woman woke up naked from the waist down at the Roadway Inn motel in Swatara Township -- not a clue as to how she'd gotten there Feb. 15, 2017, she told police in Dauphin County. The last thing she remembered was being at the dinner party she hosted the night before at a Lower Paxton Township home. After the guests left, she and her husband went to bed. But o…
Would-Be Robber With Toy Gun Nabbed After Clerk Yanks His Shirt Off Would-Be Robber With Toy Gun Nabbed After Clerk Yanks His Shirt Off
Would-Be Robber With Toy Gun Nabbed After Clerk Yanks His Shirt Off A would-be robber with a toy gun was arrested after a Pennsylvania 7-Eleven store clerk yanked his shirt off, authorities said. John E. Grubbs II, 44, of Philadelphia, was nabbed Wednesday after leaving his DNA-stained shirt at the Bensalem Township store, local police said. They did not specify the store's address.  Investigators say Grubbs entered the store on Tuesday, pointed the gun at the clerk, and demanded that he open the register. They got into a fight once the cashier realized Grubbs' weapon was a toy gun, police said. During the struggle, the employee yanked Grubb…