Pennsylvania police found a gruesome crime scene last month at the home of a pregnant Amish woman found dead in a puddle of blood in her own home in rural Crawford County, according to court documents.
“An evident laceration was observed on the front side of [Rebekah Byler’s] neck in addition to a scalping type wound on her head,” according to a pair of Pennsylvania State Police warrants released by the court Monday.
The gruesome details come just two days after police announced the arrest of a 52-year-old man named Shawn Cranston in the case.
MAN ARRESTED IN KILLING OF PREGNANT AMISH WOMAN IN PENNSYLVANIA
Pennsylvania State Police announced the arrest of Shawn Cranston on Saturday in the brutal slaying of a pregnant 23-year-old named Rebekah Byler. (Crime Watch PA)
A friend called 911 for help around 12:30 p.m. on Feb. 26 after she and the victim’s husband, Andy Byler, entered the home and found the 23-year-old victim with her throat cut in the living room.
She was six months pregnant.
Cranston, the suspect, faces charges of criminal homicide, criminal homicide of an unborn child, burglary and trespassing.
Investigators in the death of 23-year-old Amish woman Rebekah Byler in Sparta Township, Crawford County, said she had neck and head wounds when her body was found inside of her Fish Flats Road residence, pictured. (Tim Hahn/Erie Times-News/USA Today Network)
PREGNANT AMISH WOMAN KILLED IN PENNSYLVANIA HOME HAD CUTS TO HEAD, NECK: REPORT
He is being held without bail at the Crawford County Jail.
He’s due back in court for a preliminary hearing on March 15.
Read the warrant affidavits:
The slaying shocked the rural northwestern Pennsylvania community. Residents say the Amish, known for their plain dress and restricted use of technology, get along well with their non-Amish neighbors, The Associated Press reported.
“It’s not something that happens around here,” Lindsey Smith, president of the women’s auxiliary of the nearby Spartansburg Volunteer Fire Department, said last week.
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Fox News’ Christina Coulter and Michael Dorgan contributed to this report.
