Newlyweds Miranda Barbour, 18, and Elytte Barbour ,22, will stand trial on charges including homicide, conspiracy and robbery after luring a stranger through Craigslist and stabbing him to death, the Associated Press reported.
Both pleaded not guilty at separate hearings on Friday in Sunbury, Pennsylvania, and are being held without bail for the death of 42-year-old Troy LaFerrara from Port Trevorton on Nov. 11, the AP reported.
According to police, Elytte told investigators the couple, who married in North Carolina three weeks before the murder, wanted to kill someone together, the AP reported.
Miranda, who police describe as petite with brown hair, told investigators she met LaFerrara, who was 6-foot-2 and weighed 278 pounds, after placing an ad on Craigslist offering companionship for money, according to the AP. With LaFerrara in Miranda's car, they drove from Selinsgrove to Sunbury, about 100 miles.
State Police Trooper Brent Bobb interviewed Miranda and testified she said LaFerrara attacked her while in the car, leading her to grab a knife and stab him up to four times, the AP reported. According to Bobb's testimony, Miranda "blacked out and couldn't remember" anything else.
Elytte, her husband, was also in the vehicle with LaFerrara and Miranda in the backseat covered by a blanket, the AP reported. When the car parked in Sunbury, Miranda tapped his leg in a prearranged signal for him to get up and strangle LaFerrara.
According to Sunbury police officer Travis Bremigen's testimony, "the husband said he popped up and saw his wife stabbing LaFerrara," Bremigen said, according to the AP. Elytte then pulled a black cable around the victim's neck, "holding Mr. LaFerrara tightly against the front passenger seat," Bremigen said.
A black cord was found with the body which was thrown in a Sunbury alley, the AP reported. Northumberland County Coroner James Kelley testified LaFerrara was killed by "multiple sharp-force injuries," and that "strangulation possibly" aided in his killing.
The couple is shown entering Wal-Mart in surveillance videos shortly after committing the murder and bought cleaning supplies to clean the car which was covered in blood, the AP reported.
During the separate hearings held on Friday, Miranda was told she had a right to an attorney and that she could leave the interview at any time, but trooper Bobb said she did not leave, according to the AP.
"She stated several times that she did not want to leave. She knew we were coming to get her eventually and she just wanted to get it over with," Bobb told the AP.
