New Details Arise In Bechen Murder TrialPOSTED: 5:44 pm EDT September 20,
2006 GREENE COUNTY, Pa. -- The man accused of murdering a Greene County girl is now facing charges of raping her.Gabrielle Bechen's parents already had to deal with the death of their daughter, but at the Greene County Courthouse on Wednesday, they learned even more details about her murder and what police said happened shortly before she was killed.Suspect Jeffrey Martin admitted to murdering the 12-year-old girl, but consistently denies the new charges of raping her."You just don't kill a child and brutally murder a child and not have any feelings," said Bechen family friend Dora Black. "When he walks into the courtroom, that little smirk he has on his face."Most family and friends wore shirts showing Gabby as an angel with wings."We're going to wear them at the trial and all of his hearings, so he has to look at her every time he walks into the courtroom," said Black.Dr. Cyril Wecht testified his autopsy showed signs someone sexually assaulted the girl, probably an hour before her murder, but, he's still waiting for the state police to test swabs from his exam to see if there's any physical evidence linking Martin to the alleged crime."Those would be the major things, to see whether they did find anything, any kind of DNA evidence, that would be important," said Wecht.Martin's taped confession revealed his motive that June morning on the horse farm. He said the girl accused him of molesting her, and then threatened to tell her parents.Also on Wednesday, the Bechen's learned the memorial at the site where their daughter was buried on the farm was delivered to their home by the owners.The owners, who employed Martin, removed the mementos and had them delivered to the Bechen's front lawn, allowing them only to visit their property on Sundays.Friends said it's like they're losing Gabby all over again.Martin is already going to trial on the murder charges.On Wednesday, a district judge made the decision that he will also face the sexual assault charges in connection with the death. Related Links: More County News Copyright 2006 by ThePittsburghChannel. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |
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