Troopers doubted suicide in stabbing

Investigators testify about crime scene in Aswathappa homicide case

HOLLIDAYSBURG -- State troopers arriving at a Frankstown Township residence on July 27, 2021, were dispatched to a potential suicide death from stabbing.

At the residence, however, they quickly developed doubt, they said Friday in Blair County Court.

There was a bloody footprint in the upstairs of the house and the deceased male was found downstairs, Cpl. John Brown, patrol supervisor at the Hollidaysburg barracks, testified Friday.

"I walked out and contacted Sgt. (Matthew) Bonin," Brown said. "I felt the crime unit needed to come out and take a look at what we had."

Defense attorneys representing Vasudev Y. Aswathappa, 19, who is accused of homicide and related charges in the stabbing death of his brother, 24-year-old Suryadev Aswathappa, summoned 12 state police troopers to court on Friday for testimony that could be used to challenge the legality of their client's alleged confession to police.

During a September court hearing, defense attorney Ted Krol pointed out through questioning that Vasudev Aswathappa, after being transported to the state police barracks in a police vehicle, sat four hours in an interview room before being advised of his right to remain silent or to seek legal counsel.

On Friday, fellow defense attorney Christian Kerstetter questioned troopers about the development of the on-site investigation and reports referring to Vasudev Aswathappa as "the accused," even though he wasn't charged until hours later.

Assistant District Attorney Derek Elensky deflected Friday's challenge by asking the troopers to specify when reports were prepared.

Cpl. Cory Despot, acting criminal investigation unit supervisor, said a report showing that "the accused" was transported to the barracks would have been prepared after the charges were filed, so Vasudev would have been accused at that time.

When Kerstetter proposed that Vasudev was a suspect when police offered to transport him to the barracks for questioning, Despot described that as a fair assessment.

"We had suspicions that we knew we had to investigate," Despot said.

Elensky followed up by asking Despot: "Was anybody under arrest when they were brought to the station?"

The trooper answered "no."

Krol and Kerstetter also called in Vasudev's father, Sathya Aswathappa and stepmother, Ashley Holliday, who said they remained under the impression that the older son had committed suicide until a state trooper met with Holliday at the barracks and reviewed video on her cellphone, recorded by the residential surveillance system.

Holliday said she and the trooper watched the video, showing the young son leaving the front door at 2:40 a.m. with a bag in his hand and a large stain on his shirt. When he returned, the camera showed him without the bag and no shirt.

"We all just looked at each other," she testified. "We knew he had something to do with it."

Sathya Aswathappa recalled seeing his wife return after she had met with the trooper.

"She looked all shook up, and she told me what she saw on the camera footage," the father recalled. "Now my thinking is that he is involved, in some sort of way."

Kerstetter also asked Holliday about why she and husband gave their cellphones to a detective before they were transported to the barracks.

"I didn't feel like we had a choice," Holliday said. "I gave him my phone."

Sathya Aswathappa also testified that after learning about the video, he knew his son -- who was in another room at the barracks -- was in need of help. While his son was 18 years old, the father described him as "not mentally" near that age.

The father said that at the barracks, when he insisted upon seeing his son, he was advised that the son would be "out soon."

When he later asked about his son's rights, he said an officer told him his son had waived his rights.

"I said, 'He doesn't know what he's getting into," the father recounted.

Judge Jackie Bernard is presiding over the pretrial hearing that is expected to continue in December with a few more witnesses. Subsequently, the attorneys are likely to offer arguments and legal briefs in support of their positions. Bernard will have the task of reviewing the issues and rendering rulings.