A pregnant Amish mother of two was found murdered in her home by her husband, who found her lying in a pool of blood with her throat cut and her scalp apparently scalped, according to court documents. It is said that
Sean Cranston, 52, was arrested Saturday in connection with the brutal murder of Rebecca Byler, 23, at an isolated farmhouse late last month. His motives are unknown.
The victim’s husband, Andy, and a family friend found her “lying on her back in a pool of blood in the living room of the residence,” according to a probable cause affidavit. Quoted from NBC News.
Her throat had been slashed, and arriving police found a “scalping wound on her head,” court documents state.
It was previously reported that the mother, who was six months pregnant, was also shot.
Two children, ages 2 and 3, were in the home when Byler’s body was discovered, but they were not harmed in the brutal attack, authorities said.
Cranston is charged with murder, murder of an unborn child, robbery and trespassing. He was being held without bail in the Crawford County Jail.
Truck driver charged with ‘shooting’ [Byler] He was hit in the head and had his throat cut, according to a criminal complaint cited by NBC.
A woman who identified herself as the suspect’s adopted daughter said she believed the killing was a case of mistaken identity.
“I never in a million years could have imagined that my father would be such a cruel monster,” said a woman in her 20s who requested anonymity. told JET24/FOX 66.
A family that lived in Byler’s home several years ago had adopted Cranston’s grandson, but Cranston wanted him back, she said.
“Maybe she started screaming at him and he came in. That’s when boom, that was enough,” the woman told the outlet. “It’s horrifying to think about that…As far as I’m concerned, he just wanted his grandson back.”
Pennsylvania State Police arrested Cranston outside the Dollar General store next to his home.
Charlene Hajek, who lives in nearby Spartansburg, said the killing was “very traumatic” to the local community.
“We are a very close-knit community and we are really saddened by something like this happening,” she said.
