Bucks County District Attorney Matt Weintraub has announced charges in a homicide that occurred in the Holland section of Northampton Township earlier this month.
Thadius William McGrath, 35, of Chatham, Massachusetts is charged with Murder of the First Degree, Murder of the Third Degree, Endangering the Welfare of a Child, Recklessly Endangering Another Person, and Possession of an Instrument of Crime. McGrath was arraigned by Magisterial District Judge Leonard Brown and denied bail. The defendant will be remanded to the Bucks County Correctional Facility.
Shortly after 5:00 PM on Wednesday, June 8th, Northampton Township Police responded to 12014 Clark Court for a report of a suicidal subject. After a series of unanswered knocks and announcements, officers were alerted to movement inside the residence and met by a 4-year-old child, who was observed to be covered in blood. The child was quickly moved to a safe location and told police that the defendant killed her mother, and then shot himself. As police entered the home, they encountered and safely removed a second child, approximately 1 year of age.
Inside the residence police observed victim Samantha Jean Rementer, 31, deceased on the floor of the rear bedroom with apparent blunt force trauma to the face and a ligature wrapped around her neck. A post-mortem examination of the victim by the Bucks County Coroner’s Office determined the cause of death to be ligature strangulation and the manner of death to be homicide.
Police also encountered McGrath, who was suffering from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the face. A 9MM pistol was recovered from the area where the defendant was located. McGrath was taken to St. Mary’s Medical Center and then transferred to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center for treatment of his injuries.
The 4-year-old later recounted the events during a recorded child forensic interview at the Bucks County Children’s Advocacy Center, where she told investigators that the pair argued prior to the defendant beating and strangling the victim.
“This man murdered Ms. Rementer in front her children, then unsuccessfully tried to take his own life”, said District Attorney Matt Weintraub. “I cannot think of two more cowardly acts. He will now be made to pay an exacting price for his crimes.”
This case is being investigated by Detectives with the Northampton Township Police Department and the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office and being prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Thomas C. Gannon and Assistant District Attorney Julia K. Wilkins.
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