Police accuse Royce Moser of killing 18-year-old Karoline Heintz and his mother of helping conceal evidence after the attack.
CALIFORNIA, Pa. — An 18-year-old man and his mother face criminal charges after Karoline Heintz, a first-year PennWest California soccer player, was found dead in the rear of her Jeep near a public library early Thursday, authorities said.
Pennsylvania State Police charged Royce Moser with homicide and several related offenses in Heintz’s death. Investigators allege Moser met Heintz outside his father’s home in North Strabane Township on Wednesday, Aug. 19, to talk about their relationship, then stabbed her after becoming angry. Police say he put Heintz in the rear of her Jeep Cherokee, drove to his mother Rachel Moser’s home in Beallsville, and later returned the vehicle to California Borough with his mother’s help.
Heintz had spent time with family earlier Wednesday and was expected to return to campus housing, according to the Washington County Coroner’s Office and court records cited by local news organizations. Her father told investigators she left home that night and was heading back toward PennWest, according to an affidavit. When she did not check in and relatives could not reach her, her family used an Apple AirTag in the Jeep to track the vehicle to the area of the California Public Library. Police were called shortly after midnight and found the Jeep near the library at about 12:24 a.m.
State police said officers saw blood inside and outside the vehicle before finding Heintz in the rear hatch area. Investigators later traced her movements to Moser’s father’s home in North Strabane Township, where police searched the property during the investigation. According to a criminal complaint, Moser told investigators that something Heintz said during a conversation in the Jeep made him angry, though he said he could not remember what it was. Police allege he then went inside, retrieved a kitchen knife and returned to the vehicle before stabbing her.
The complaint also says Moser told investigators that a “demon” had taken over and told him to stab Heintz. His mother gave investigators a similar account of what her son told her after the attack, according to court documents. The state police release does not identify a separate motive for the alleged attack. Moser’s statement to investigators is part of a pending criminal case and has not been tested in court.
After the stabbing, police allege Moser drove Heintz’s Jeep to Rachel Moser’s home in Beallsville and asked for help. State police say Rachel Moser tried to clean the Jeep with cleaning sprays, gave her son latex gloves and then drove another vehicle while he followed in Heintz’s Jeep toward California Borough. Investigators say they left the Jeep near the library with Heintz still inside before returning to Beallsville. Court records also allege Rachel Moser washed her son’s clothing and discarded the knife in household trash. Police later recovered a knife while serving a search warrant, according to local reports.
Investigators also cited surveillance video that they say showed Heintz’s Jeep being driven near the place where it was later found, with Rachel Moser’s vehicle following, according to the criminal complaint. Police located Royce and Rachel Moser at her Beallsville residence and took them for interviews as investigators searched locations connected to the case.
Royce Moser is charged with homicide, tampering with evidence, abuse of a corpse, conspiracy to commit tampering with evidence, conspiracy to commit abuse of a corpse and obstruction of justice, according to state police. Rachel Moser is charged with hindering apprehension of a fugitive, tampering with evidence, abuse of a corpse, the same two conspiracy counts and obstruction of justice. Both were arraigned Thursday night and sent to the Washington County jail without bond, the Observer-Reporter reported. Their preliminary hearings were tentatively scheduled for Aug. 31 at 2:30 p.m. Online court records cited by the newspaper did not list attorneys for either defendant as of Friday.
Heintz’s family released its first public statement Friday, calling her death a “parent’s worst nightmare” and asking for privacy while relatives grieve. The family described Heintz as kind, smart and deeply loved, and said it wanted justice for “sweet” Karoline. The family directed other questions to Pennsylvania State Police as investigators continued working with the Washington County District Attorney’s Office.
Heintz had graduated from Peters Township High School in the spring and was beginning her first year at Pennsylvania Western University’s California campus. She was a defender on the women’s soccer team and had already been practicing with teammates. PennWest said the university was deeply saddened by her death and that campus police were cooperating with state investigators. The school said the incident occurred off campus. Peters Township School District said it would make additional counselors and social workers available to students.
The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference said Friday that conference athletic events from Aug. 27 through Sept. 3 will observe a moment of silence for Heintz. California Athletics described her as a bright and kind young woman with much ahead of her as her family, teammates and former soccer community mourned her death.
State police said the homicide investigation remains ongoing with the Washington County District Attorney’s Office. A full coroner’s report had not been released as of Friday. Royce and Rachel Moser remain accused, not convicted, and the charges against them will move through the court process, with preliminary hearings tentatively set for Aug. 31.