RIVERSIDE, Calif. (AP) - A man has been ordered to stand trial for the killing of three members of a Southern California household whose bodies were found at a burning home in 2006.
A Riverside County district attorney’s statement says 25-year-old Cristin Smith was held to answer on three murder counts Wednesday after a preliminary hearing.
Smith has pleaded not guilty.
Smith and co-defendant Robert Pape are charged with killing Pape’s ex-girlfriend, Becky Friedli, her mother and her mother’s boyfriend.
Friedli’s body was found on fire in a wheelbarrow near the burning home and the other bodies were found inside.
Authorities say the men were arrested March 12 after DNA tests on a business card found near the crime scene found a possible match for Smith, and cellphone records indicated both men were near the home the night of the killings.
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Information from: The Press-Enterprise, https://www.pe.com
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