David Repasky told a friend he was drunk when he went to the home of his mother-in-law, had sex with her and then killed her when she threatened to tell his new bride, according to police documents released Monday.
Repasky, 26, of Brinton Road, North Braddock, was arrested yesterday on charges of criminal homicide for the July 2000 death of Lynda McClelland, 44, of Forest Hills, whose body was found Friday in a shallow grave in Wilkins.
Repasky, who police said married McClelland's daughter, Amanda, about a month before the slaying, told reporters that he is innocent and denied having a sexual encounter with his mother-in-law.
"I love my wife; I love my family," Repasky said before his arraignment before deputy coroner Susan Miller, who ordered him held without bond to await a coroner's hearing scheduled for 10 a.m. March 25.
But Repasky's friend, who was not identified, told police a different story, according to an affidavit of probable cause.
The friend, who admitted digging McClelland's grave and helping to bury the body, said Repasky told him he beat and choked McClelland and then stood on her neck because she was still alive, the affidavit states.
The affidavit also states that McClelland had a history of psychiatric problems.
Allegheny County Police Superintendent Kenneth Fulton said McClelland's disappearance remained a mystery until a statewide grand jury began investigating a crime ring that prosecutors said may be responsible for between 300 and 400 burglaries and robberies in Allegheny, Westmoreland and surrounding counties.
Repasky, who was among 10 people arrested last week on charges handed down in the grand jury indictment, was a suspect in McClelland's disappearance from the beginning but detectives could not find enough evidence to arrest him, Fulton said.
According to the affidavit:
Amanda Repasky reported McClelland missing on July 27 and told Forest Hills police she was concerned about her safety because of her mental problems and history of sexually destructive behavior. She said she last saw her mother about 11 the night before.
David Repasky's friend told police that Repasky awoke him one morning, saying he needed his help. The two drove to McClelland's house, where the friend saw her body on the living room floor, clad only in a shirt.
Repasky told the friend that he had been drunk when he went to McCelland's house and had sex with her. He said he became angry when McClelland told him she was going to tell his wife about the encounter.
The friend said Repasky told him he struck McClelland and then began choking her after she threatened to call police.
Repasky told the friend he choked McClelland with his hands. When he found she was still alive, he told the friend he braced himself against a door jam and stepped on McClelland's neck.
An autopsy showed that McClelland died of compression to the neck.
The friend helped Repasky purchase garbage bags and duct tape, wrap up the body and hide it in the basement.
They went to a wooded area off Quarry Street where the friend began digging a grave. Repasky went home so his wife wouldn't become suspicious. After the friend went home, he said, Repasky drove the body to Quarry Street and left it in the woods. The friend then went back and buried it.
Repasky later told the friend he poured ammonia around the grave so dogs couldn't find the scent.
On March 10, the same day Repasky and other alleged members of the burglary and robbery ring were arrested, county police were told McClelland's body was buried in the woods.
Police have not said if Repasky's friend is another member of the ring. Fulton would only describe them as "more or less friends."
The informant led police to the wooded area on Thursday and McClelland's body, wrapped in plastic bags, was found the next day.
The wooded area is located next door to the home of the grandmother of David Wall, 26, of Turtle Creek, who was among those indicted by the grand jury.
Fulton said yesterday that the informant has not been charged with McClelland's death. The superintendent also said police do not know if the alleged sexual encounter between Repasky and McClelland was a single occurrence or part of an ongoing affair.
McClelland, who worked as a waitress at a Forest Hills restaurant, had a boyfriend.
Fulton said that David and Amanda Repasky are still married and the parents of three children.
Pauline Repasky, of Braddock Hills, defended her grandson yesterday. "I don't understand why they're blaming him for it. They shouldn't blame him. He didn't do it."
She said her grandson called her Saturday and told her he didn't know the body was found.
Pauline Repasky said she and David Repasky's mother paid their respects to McClelland's family at the funeral home yesterday. She said Lynda McClelland, who also is survived by another daughter, Marci, was cremated.
"Everyone ignored us," she said. "The only one who came up and put her arms around me was Amanda."
Yesterday was particularly difficult for the Repasky family because it was the second birthday of Noah Repasky, the son of David and Amanda.
"I am very upset about it," Pauline Repasky said.
