A 43-year-old woman allegedly shot her elderly parents in the head and slowly dismembered their bodies with a chainsaw over a period of days in their Abington Township home.
Detectives said Verity Beck shot dead her 72-year-old mother Miriam Beck and 73-year-old father Reid Beck. She used an electric chainsaw to dismember the bodies. Verity has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of third-degree murder and other crimes.
Body Parts in Trash Bags
Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steel and Abington Township Police Chief Patrick Molloy, in a joint statement, said the police was sent to the home on Tuesday, in Abington about 12 miles north of Philadelphia, for a check.
Justin Beck, Miriam and Reid Beck's son, said he hadn't heard from the couple in more than a week. He had gone to check on his parents on Tuesday night as he had not spoken to them since January 7. Justin said he saw a dead body covered with a bloody sheet when he entered the house. He told the police that he saw his sister, Verity, and they spoke for half an hour. He then went home and called the police.
When the police reached the residence, they called for Verity who appeared in the kitchen. The police asked about her parents and she replied "They are dead."
The police found Verity Beck at the home and the victims' bodies. "They found body parts in trash bags that had been placed in two trash cans. One of the victims was tightly wrapped in a white bedsheet and blanket," Steel said. "There were signs of extreme trauma present."
An autopsy established that the elderly couple were shot once in the head. Detectives believe a pillow was used during the gunfire to muffle the noise. Steel said the shots appeared to have been fired before the couple were dismembered. "We hope and pray that happened first."
Motive Not Established
An investigation into the motive is ongoing. "This is (Verity) somebody that is dismembering her mother and father, and putting body parts in trash cans, so clearly she's trying to get rid of the evidence," Steel said.
The investigators found three guns inside the house and a safe in the second-floor bedroom with some tools. There were drill marks on the safe.
