A Pennsylvania man has been charged with the murder of his estranged wife, less than a month after he was slapped with a court order to stay away from her.
The Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office said that Kenneth Shea, 37, took a ride share from the hotel where he was staying to near Elizabeth Shea’s home, pushed an air conditioning unit in, and entered.
Employees at the pet daycare where she worked called for a welfare check Wednesday morning, and deputies found her dead in her room with stab wounds to the neck. They also found hard drives from the home’s surveillance system and three cell phones in sinks and toilets in the house.
Investigators learned that Kenneth Shea had taken the ride share from the Comfort Inn to just behind Elizabeth Shea’s home shortly after midnight, taking a ride back to the hotel at about 3:30 a.m.
He was arrested by a Bensalem Police SWAT team at about 6 p.m. and charged with first-, second-, and third-degree murder. He’s being held without bond.
Police said there was an active warrant for his arrest from a January incident in which he allegedly strangled her, WPVI reported. He was served with the order of protection on March 15. It’s unclear how he was served with the order of protection and not arrested on the outstanding warrant.
A preliminary hearing is sheduled for April 23.
