The investigation into the killing of an 84-year-old Washington woman and severe injuries to her son continued through its second full day Thursday, with a lot of police work being done but not much information to release publicly, Warren County Prosecutor James Pfeiffer told lehighvalleylive.com late in the afternoon.
A motive has yet to be developed, but the general public isn’t in any danger, Pfeiffer said.
No one has been charged in the killing.
An autopsy was performed Wednesday on Elaine Trachin, who lived with her son in 100 block of Wayne Street. However, release of the cause of death is pending the completion of the ongoing investigation, Pfeiffer said. Her death has already been ruled a homicide.
Easton resident Kyle Kaspereen, who was arrested after allegedly deleting text messages between himself and Trachin’s son, remained jailed Thursday on charges of tampering with physical evidence and hindering apprehension or prosecution. Kaspereen was in contact with the son via cellphone and visited the home Tuesday, investigators say in court papers. Kaspereen, in a break from questioning by detectives, deleted the messages “because they didn’t add up to what I told you,” Washington Township police said in court papers.
The prosecutor’s office will request during a detention hearing either Friday or Monday that Kaspereen be held in custody, but Pfeiffer wouldn’t go into what his office will say during the court appearance.
It is unusual for a person charged with fourth-degree offenses to be kept in jail, but the office’s arguments will speak for themselves, Pfeiffer said.
At this point the prosecutor’s office and Washington Township police, who cover the borough, are handling the investigation into the killing, which was discovered about 8:15 p.m. Tuesday, Pfeiffer said. The New Jersey State Police or FBI may be called in if needed, according to the prosecutor.
The son remained stable but in critical condition on Thursday at an area trauma center, Pfeiffer said. Investigators have yet to speak to him, Pfeiffer added.
Since Kaspereen allegedly deleted text messages between himself and the son, the likely only other record of them would be on the son’s phone. Pfeiffer wouldn’t say if authorities are in possession of that device.
“The information contained in the call detail records and location history” between Kaspereen and the son “will reveal information leading to the potential identity of the person(s) responsible for these crimes,” investigators wrote in the court records.
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Tony Rhodin can be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com.
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