Hide Article Text (OCR)
Documents filed in Gates murderBy-Chris Wechtenhiser Gazette Staff WriterCourt documents filed last week n the Dana Gates murder investigation revealed that Gates and ler fiance had contact the night lefore her murder with a Dun-:ansville couple awaiting trial for mother murder in Maryland.The information came out in a jetition Blair County District Attorney Dave Gorman filed to lave the edited portions, of a ifearch warrant served on a Mar-insburg man's property, resealed. 3lair County Judge Joline Grubb iopriva granted the reseal on the indisclosed portions of the war-*ant on Thursday.1 In his petition, Gorman wrote, The Pennsylvania State Police, 3edford Barracks, have information that Dana Gates and Lorin 3urket (Gates’ fiance) had contact vith Benjamin and Erika Sifrit, vhoh^ve been charged with lomicide in the state of Maryland. ['His contact was the night before He killing of Dana Gates,”Bedford County District Attor-ley Dwight Diehl confirmed Wednesday that the two couples vere seen in the same bar the light of Nov. 29.Gates was discovered near a vail outside her Schellsburg Road 10me' in Kimmel Township by a lassing motorist about 4:30 a.m. n Nov. 30. Burket was found soon ifter that in the home, badly beat-m.Diehl said police learned about He two couples being in the same mr after stories about the Sifrits’ lending murder charges surfaced n area newspapers.He said someone recognized the Sifrits and called police the inform hem they were in the same bar as 3ates and Burket on Nov. 29.The Sifrits are awaiting trial in Hcean City on charges they bru-ally murdered a Virginia couple, Martha Crutehley, 51, and Joshua ?ord, 32. After being arrested, )oiiee. said Erika Sifrit admitted ;o her role in helping her husband l.ispose of the Virginia couple ifter. he shot and dismembered ;heir bodies.Ocean City Police believe thetwo couples met by chance on a bus when Benjamin Sifrit borrowed a dollar from Ford to pay the bus fare. Police said Ford told Sifrit he could repay him and Crutehley by taking them out for a beer.Diehl said police looked into similarities between the two murders. He said both were brutal and both occurred after the Sifrits were seen at a bar with the cou-ples.Gorman also said in his petition that duct tape was used in the Gates murder, and the Sifrits were found to have a roll of duct tape with them.Diehl confirmed Tuesday that duct tape was used in Gates’ murder but wouldn’t elaborate further about how it was used.As for the duct tape found with the Sifrits, Diehl said it isn’t unusual for someone to have a roll of duct tape in their vehicle.Diehl said the duct tape and encounters in the bars appear to be coincidental.We’re checking out every avenue though,” he said.Diehl said local police questioned the Sifrits when they went to Ocean City in June to help authorities there with background information on the Sifrits for the Ocean City investigation.He said the Sifrits have admitted to nothing regarding the murder of Gates and the attack on Burket. He said they are currently considered possible suspects..Diehl said after talking with the Sifrits, investigators began to reinterview everyone in the Gates case because of the new information, hoping it might stir someone’s memory more.Gorman’s petition also said that police obtained new information as of July 30 that a previous suspect in the Gates investigation sold a vehicle he owned shortly after the murder occurred. Thepetition said police need to review PennDOT records concerning the vehicle.Kopriva’s Aug. 1 ruling will keep* the redacted portions of the Search warrant sealed for another 30 days.
Newspaper Details
Bedford Inquirer
Bedford, Pennsylvania, US
Fri, Aug 16, 2002
Page 5
Full Page
Clipped by
Anonymous
USA 07 Aug 2020
Other Publications Near Bedford, Pennsylvania
Bedford Daily Gazette
Bedford County Inquirer
Bedford Gazette Weekend
Weekend Extra
Bedford Inquirer
