Royce Moser Charged in 18-Year-Old Karoline Heintz's Killing, Mother Accused of Cover-Up
Updated
Updated · CBS New York · Aug 21
Royce Moser Charged in 18-Year-Old Karoline Heintz's Killing, Mother Accused of Cover-Up
3 articles · Updated · CBS New York · Aug 21
Summary
Pennsylvania police said 18-year-old Royce Moser stabbed PennWest California freshman Karoline Heintz after the couple met Wednesday to discuss their relationship, then put her body in the hatch of her Jeep Cherokee.
Investigators said Moser went into his father's North Strabane home for a large kitchen knife, stabbed Heintz in the chest, drove to his mother Rachel Moser's home, and the two tried to clean the car, clothes and weapon.
Rachel Moser allegedly told her son to bathe, washed his clothes, bagged the knife, used disinfectant on the Jeep and followed him to a California Borough parking lot where the vehicle was abandoned.
Just after midnight, Heintz's family requested a welfare check when she never returned to her dorm; using an Apple AirTag, they helped police locate the Jeep near the California Public Library, where officers found her body.
Royce Moser faces homicide, abuse-of-a-corpse and evidence-tampering charges, while Rachel Moser faces hindering and related counts; both are due in preliminary hearings later this month as state police continue investigating.