Girlfriend of accused Butler County killer misses court date

A Butler County judge ordered the girlfriend of a man accused of killing his parents taken into custody because she failed to show for a court hearing on Wednesday.

Common Pleas Judge S. Michael Yeager in March had ordered Rayna Regenthal of Randolph, N.J., to appear before him. Yeager said he had proof that New Jersey police served her notice of the hearing months ago.

Regenthal, who could not be reached for comment and did not have a lawyer representing her in court, was the longtime girlfriend of Colin Abbott, 41, of Rutherford, N.J. Prosecutors accuse him of killing his parents, Kenneth Abbott, 65, and his wife, Celeste Abbott, 55, both of Butler County, last year. His father made him the heir to their $10 million estate weeks before he is accused of killing them.

Lawyers and court officials who have been working to account for all the couple's assets believe that Regenthal had possession of a Porsche, a 40-foot motorboat and a chopper-style motorcycle. In earlier court filings, she denied it and said she doesn't know where any of the items are.

Colin Abbott shot his parents and scattered their remains in and around a pond on their Brady estate, police said. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against Abbott, who is charged with criminal homicide and is being held in Butler County Prison. His trial is scheduled for this fall.

Along with the criminal proceedings, Abbott is involved in an intricate set of civil filings involving his parents' estate. He loses all claims to it if he is convicted of murder.