Indiana County authorities remained tight-lipped Friday about the slaying of a Blairsville dentist.
An autopsy showed that Dr. John Yelenic, 39, died as a result of a severe loss of blood, according to Coroner Michael Baker.
"Although the coroner's office cannot release certain details of the autopsy because of the ongoing investigation, I am fully convinced of homicide in Yelenic's death," Baker said.
Investigators said privately that they believe Yelenic's throat was slashed in a struggle several hours before his body was found.
No arrests have been made.
Yelenic was a partner in the Reilly & Yelenic Dental office.
The slaying was discovered by a 9-year-old boy at 3:30 p.m. Thursday, Baker said.
The coroner said the boy was walking past Yelenic's three-story home and noticed broken glass and blood near the front door. He summoned two adults who opened the door and found Yelenic's body just inside.
Yelenic's partner, Dr. Thomas Reilly, was having difficulty dealing with the loss.
"I was the one who encouraged him to enter dentistry. At age 6, his mother, Mary Lois (Yelenic), who was a Derry Area Middle School teacher, used to bring him in," Reilly said.
"John was always asking questions. You could tell right away that he was very, very intelligent."
Reilly, 59, said Yelenic enjoyed his practice. "He had a terrific rapport with his patients."
Reilly said he offered Yelenic a partnership immediately upon his graduation in 1993 from the University of Pittsburgh's dental school.
"I even attended his graduation," Reilly said. "We all keep asking ourselves how and what happened here."
Yelenic's father, John, died in 1967, and his mother died in 1997.
Acquaintances said Yelenic and his wife, Michele, of White Township, Indiana County, were in the process of obtaining a divorce. The couple have a 7-year-old son.
