Police following leads in homicide | TribLIVE.com
TribLive Logo
| Back | Text Size:
https://archive.triblive.com/news/police-following-leads-in-homicide/

Police following leads in homicide

Bob Stiles
| Thursday, May 10, 2012 4:00 a.m.
Greensburg police and Westmoreland County detectives are trying to get to know homicide victim William Mark Painter better. Law enforcement officials hope those efforts will help them to solve Painter's killing. As of Tuesday, authorities said they didn't have a suspect in the Greensburg man's death. "We're still canvassing the neighborhood to see if anyone saw anything unusual, following up on leads we've received," said Greensburg police Capt. George Seranko. "There's nothing much after that, no real breakthrough. There are no new developments. We're still looking for suspects." Painter, 45, was found dead Sunday afternoon in his apartment at 302 N. Pennsylvania Ave. He was discovered by his brother, Eric Painter, of Jeannette, who said he became concerned about his brother after he didn't answer knocks at his door or telephone calls made by him and other family members. An autopsy determined Painter died from blunt-force trauma to the head, Seranko said. He also suffered multiple stab wounds to the neck and chest from an unspecified object, according to the county coroner's office. Authorities believe the body was in the home for a while before it was discovered. The coroner's office didn't specify an approximate time of death. Police said nothing appeared to have been taken from the apartment, and there were no obvious signs of forced entry. The interviews done by investigators included at least one trip to West Place Clubhouse, a drop-in center for the mentally ill in Greensburg, according to sources. Painter, who family members said had suffered from mental illness and drug addiction, had frequented West Place, which is operated by Westmoreland Regional Hospital. The center on South Main Street offers clients a place to socialize, be evaluated, eat, watch television or talk to counselors. Sources said Painter had been barred from the facility awhile ago. Renee Varnard, a supervisor at West Place, declined to comment on Painter. Attempts yesterday to speak with Linda Hood-Koshar, West Place program director, were unsuccessful. Investigators wouldn't talk about their interviews -- at West Place or elsewhere. Eric Painter said his brother wasn't married. He wasn't certain whether he had a girlfriend. The elder Painter was living on disability insurance. "Generally, we'd talk about my kids, maybe sporting events, political things," Painter recalled of visits with his brother. Yesterday, Westmoreland County District Attorney John Peck, county detectives and Greensburg police met to review information garnered so far in the investigation in an effort to solve the city's second homicide in two weeks. "We're still checking out leads," county Chief Detective Mike Brajdich said. "We're still interviewing witnesses. It's a regular homicide investigation." Eric Painter, accompanied by his brother's landlord, found the body at about 2 p.m. Sunday. He said he, his mother, Bernice, and an uncle had tried several times last week to visit his brother at his apartment or reach him by telephone, all to no avail. Police said the family last saw Painter on March 2. "(His uncle) tried to contact him two, three days in a row, and couldn't contact him," Painter said. Painter, 37, said his mother, who usually spoke to her older son about doctor appointments and other concerns, couldn't get him by telephone, either. She called her younger son on Saturday. "'I think something might have happened. Can you go check on him?'" he said he remembered his mother saying. Painter said he believed something was wrong when he went to the apartment. "Things didn't seem right. Mail wasn't picked up from the mailbox, things like that," he said. After the landlord unlocked the apartment door, Painter entered and saw his brother's body. He then called authorities. "That's not something you want to see," he said.


Copyright ©2025— Trib Total Media, LLC (TribLIVE.com)