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Fayette man waives hearing in Greene slaying case

By Steve Barrett For The 2 min read

WAYNESBURG – A Fayette County man charged in the June 13 strangulation death of a 12-year-old Greene County girl waived his right to appear at his formal arraignment on Monday. Jeffrey Robert Martin, 48, of New Geneva was scheduled to appear before Greene County President Judge H. Terry Grimes Monday morning. Martin was to be formally arraigned on charges of homicide, aggravated assault and four counts of tampering with evidence but waived his right to appear at the arraignment.

Waiving the arraignment means that Martin will be entering a plea of not guilty to the charges, and that he received a copy of – and understands – the charges filed against him, according to Greene County District Attorney Marjorie Fox.

A representative from the Greene County Clerk of Courts office said Martin has been tentatively scheduled to stand trial on the charges in Greene County Court on Aug. 17.

Martin was arrested on June 17 on charges that he killed Gabrielle Miranda Bechen after her body was found in a shallow grave on a horse farm near her home in Dunkard Township. Martin’s arrest came after a five-day search in which hundreds of volunteers and law enforcement personnel scoured the area looking for the girl, who was last seen riding her all-terrain vehicle early morning on June 13.

Martin, who was employed as a caretaker on the farm where Bechen’s body was found, was ordered to stand trial on the charges during a preliminary hearing on June 21.

During the preliminary hearing, prosecutors played a recorded interview in which Martin told state police he panicked on June 13 when Bechen told him that she would tell her parents that he molested her. In the recording, Martin said he then grabbed Bechen’s arm and she ran but fell down, and he choked her until she stopped moving. He said he then buried her and the evidence.

Martin led police to the girl’s body after searchers found her ATV, which he also buried.

On July 13, First Assistant District Attorney Linda Chambers filed a notice of aggravating circumstances against Martin, which allows prosecutors to pursue the death penalty if he is found guilty of killing Bechen.

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