Police Arrest Suspect In Throat Slashing Murder Of Elderly Woman
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) --Police have arrested 37 year-old Leroy Wilson for the brutal murder of an elderly woman who was found dead with her throat slashed in East Mount Airy.
Authorities arrested Wilson early Saturday morning at the home of a girlfriend at Brown Street in Norristown. He's charged with murder for the beating and stabbing death of Regina Brunner-Holmes.
"It was very brutal," said Homicide Captain James Clark. "I mean you have an 85-year-old female that can't defend herself. She's beaten and she's stabbed multiple times and ultimately, her throat was slit."
Police said there was no sign of forced entry. Clark said the suspect was well-known in the victim's neighborhood as "Leroy the Handyman" and had done work for several residents, including Brunner-Holmes.
"So when he knocks on her door, she lets him in because she knows him." said Clark. "At that point, we can surmise that he came in, I think he tried to take something from her, maybe she caught him in the act, and he ultimately beat her and killed her."
Clark said the suspect tried to make online purchases with the victim's credit card and tried to make an ATM withdrawal with her bank card, enabling officers to track down the victim's stolen car and laptop, both containing DNA linked to the suspect.