Police have made an arrest in connection with the tragic death of 23-year-old pregnant Rebekah Byler, which has deeply impacted an Amish community in Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania State Police disclosed early Saturday morning that Shawn Cranston, a 52-year-old man from Corry, Pennsylvania, has been arrested.
Cranston faces multiple charges, including criminal homicide, criminal homicide of an unborn child, burglary, and criminal trespass, in relation to the murder of the Amish woman.
Sparta Township, located in Crawford County, lies just outside the borough of Spartansburg and approximately 35 miles southeast of Erie, Pennsylvania.
“Everyone is stunned—this doesn’t happen here,” remarked Charleen Hajec, a pharmacist and native of Spartansburg, to ABC News. “Everyone is talking. It’s scary and frustrating.”
ALSO READ: Kentucky College Student Murder Rocks Campus As Killings Plague Schools
Hajec expressed disbelief that a murder could occur in Sparta Township, describing it as a “tight-knit community.” “The outside world doesn’t get in,” she remarked. “To have something this tragic… it doesn’t happen here.”
Sparta Township, situated in Crawford County, lies adjacent to the borough of Spartansburg and is approximately 35 miles southeast of Erie, Pennsylvania. An Amish man who requested anonymity but is acquainted with Byler’s family conveyed to ABC News the profound devastation caused by her death.
POLL—Should the U.S. Government Create a Path to Citizenship for Undocumented Immigrants?
“We are people who believe in God and turn to him during a time like this,” he shared. According to court documents, the pregnant Amish woman was discovered deceased in her rural Pennsylvania home, lying in a pool of blood with her throat cut.
The individual who contacted 911 on February 26 reported that upon their return to the residence in Sparta Township with Andy Byler, 24, they found Rebekah Byler lying on her back in the living room in a pool of blood, as stated in the probable cause affidavit.
Rebekah Byler, aged 23 and pregnant according to police statements, was found with her throat cut and a “scalping-type wound on her head,” as detailed in the probable cause affidavit.
ALSO READ: Judge Sentences Chicago Man to Life in Prison for Killing His Kids
A motive for the crime remains unclear. However, state police stated on Monday that leads, interviews, and evidence collection contributed to Cranston’s arrest. Cranston was arraigned on Saturday morning and is currently held without bond at the Crawford County Jail.
You Might Also Like:
“I’m Living Proof of Why IVF Is Necessary!” Advocates Support Alabama Bill Protecting IVF Treatment
West Virginia Governor Set to Sign State Bill Banning Non-Binary Gender From Birth Certificates
US Locations Vladimir Putin Would Likely Target in a Nuclear War
Expert Claims Eleventh Circuit May Have Ordered Cannon to Step Aside in Trump Case
White Supremacist Fitness Clubs Exposed for Fat-Shaming Trump Supporters and Plotting Race Wars
