More than 30 years after an elderly woman was stabbed to death inside her Lehigh Valley home, an arrest has been made in her murder.
On Thursday, May 16, 2024, Lehigh County District Attorney Gavin Holihan announced homicide and burglary charges against Michael Breisch, now 65, in the 1989 murder of 78-year-old Rose Hnath.
The murder of Rose Hnath
At the time of her murder, Hnath was a widow who lived alone in her home along the 2600 block of 2nd Street in the Coplay section of North Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania, along the banks of the Lehigh River.
After she never appeared at a church she normally attended, family members went to her home the night of Jan. 21, 1989, and found her body. Her home had also been ransacked.
Investigators said Hnath died of multiple stab wounds and blunt force trauma. Her death was ruled a homicide.
Holihan said Hnath fought back during the attack.
“It’s clear from early on that she had defensive wounds which indicates that she put up a fight,” Holihan said.
At the time, a knife and pellet gun were found at the crime scene and across the street from the home. The items were preserved for decades as officials continued to investigate the murder.
DNA technology leads to break in the cold case
Hnath’s death remained unsolved for years until technological advances led to a break in the case. Investigators used DNA evidence to identify Breisch as the suspect, officials said.
“Ultimately, the efforts taken to preserve the evidence were rewarded when investigative techniques unavailable in the 20th century helped lead us to the defendant, Michael Breisch, and allowed us to make this arrest in 2024,” a spokesperson for the Lehigh County District Attorney’s Office wrote.
At the time of Hnath’s murder, Breisch was living in a community corrections facility in Allentown. Holihan said Breisch burglarized Hnath’s home the day of her murder. Hnath’s home was also burglarized prior to her death though Breisch has not been linked to that earlier burglary, according to Holihan.
After Breisch was identified as the murder suspect, he was arrested in Ohio where he had been living briefly after spending several years in Pennsylvania, officials said. Breisch was then extradited to Pennsylvania.
He is being held without bail at the Lehigh County Jail on charges of criminal homicide, burglary, robbery and other related offenses. He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on May 21, 2024.
Pennsylvania State troopers Jared Christman and Zachary McCornac as well as Lehigh County Detectives Robert Egan and Joseph Vazquez were all involved in the investigation.
The Lehigh County District Attorney’s Office, the Lehigh County Homicide Task Force and law enforcement officials in Coshocton County, Ohio, also assisted in Breisch’s arrest and extradition, according to Holihan.
Holihan also said investigators spoke with Hnath’s family members about the arrest.
“They’re gratified and relieved that there’s been an arrest made,” he said.
Holihan said there’s no indication that Breisch knew Hnath at the time of the murder. Investigators also believe Breisch acted alone and they aren’t seeking anyone else in connection to Hnath’s death.
Online court records don’t list any legal representation for Breisch.