What began Saturday with a suspicious death in Carroll Township quickly evolved into a homicide investigation and an interstate manhunt, according to township police Monday.
Carroll Township police Chief Sean Kapfhammer displays a photo of the murder suspect, Bryan W. Brackbill, at a press conference Monday.
While York County Coroner Barry Bloss has yet to confirm a cause in the death of 52-year-old Sandra Mulder, Carroll Township police Chief Sean Kapfhammer has filed charges of homicide against Mulder's alleged killer, 32-year-old Bryan Wayne Brackbill Jr., the chief said at a press conference in Dillsburg early Monday afternoon.
"Brackbill, who we believe to have fled the state, is considered to be armed and particularly dangerous," Kapfhammer said.
Mulder was found deceased Sunday in her home in the 200 block of Chestnut Grove Road, where she had been living with Brackbill for about a year. Kapfhammer declined to go into detail regarding the exact relationship between Mulder and Brackbill, but Brackbill was believed to have been living in the area for several years before Mulder took him in.
Police were familiar with Brackbill prior to the death investigation and he was on home surveillance with a court date stemming from retail theft charges filed against him in May when Mulder was found dead, Kapfhammer said.
"We have reason to believe he may be in the Indianapolis area and we have [U.S.] Marshals working in that area now," Kapfhammer said, explaining that detectives believe Brackbill may have family in that area.
Brackbill is also believed to be driving Mulder's car, a 2006 Pontiac Grand Prix, which police believe he stole following the killing. All in all, Kapfhammer was optimistic regarding the chances that Brackbill would be caught soon.
"He's probably running low on funds, he probably doesn't have a lot of contacts in that area [and] he's operating a stolen car, so we're pretty optimistic," he said.
The vehicle's license plate is GKP1303, but Brackbill may have stolen another vehicle by now or tried to dispose of Mulder's car, Kapfhammer added.
Police were able to file the warrant for Brackbill after obtaining what Kapfhammer described as "crucial evidence" from an out-of-state witness earlier Monday. The warrant charges Brackbill with criminal homicide, theft of a motor vehicle and unlawful restraint, Kapfhammer said.
Mulder was last seen at about 1 a.m. Saturday morning, and Bloss believes she was killed sometime between that time and noon on Sunday. Family members found Mulder's body Sunday when they became concerned after not having heard from her in some time, he said.
"We did an autopsy today with no conclusive evidence, so we're pending the cause of the death at this point in time," Bloss said. "The victim was bound with her feet and her hands, we did not find trauma on the body, and that's why we can't determine the cause of death."
Detective Sgt. John Schreiner confirmed that Brackbill had a criminal history, but declined to discuss details regarding all of his previous charges at the press conference Monday. Kapfhammer said Brackbill was wearing a court-ordered home monitoring device on his ankle, but police believe he cut it off before fleeing the area.
Since Brackbill moved in with Mulder, police have been called to the residence several times, Kapfhammer said.
"There have been calls [for that residence] but I'm not aware of any particular circumstances at this point," Kapfhammer said.
A man who attended the press conference and identified himself as a friend of Mulder's said the victim decided to take Brackbill into her home to give him time to recover from addiction and homelessness.
"She was a very kind, over-the-top kind of woman," said the man, who declined to provide his name. "If you needed help, it didn't matter if she knew you or not, she would help you."
