SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) – A New Jersey man has pleaded not guilty to murder and other charges in the death of his wife, whose body was found in Maryland by investigators using a GPS device in his vehicle.
Twenty-eight-year-old Kyle Crosby is jailed on $1.2 million bail. He could face a life sentence if convicted of killing 26-year-old Erica Crippen.
The woman’s remains were found underneath a pile of branches and limbs in a grove of pine trees, according to Burlington County Prosecutor Robert D. Bernardi. She was wrapped in a fleece blanket, Bernardi said, and her hands and feet had been bound with a cord that was also wrapped around her neck. He added, she had duct tape across her mouth and nose.
Investigators found Crippen’s body along a rural road in Sykesville, Maryland, in March. She had been missing since New Year’s Eve. Using the GPS device in her husband’s vehicle, investigators studied more than 8,600 coordinates that had been recorded by the device, Bernardi said.
Leading to the discovery of the woman’s body, based on the GPS coordinates, investigators determined that Crosby had spent more time in the vicinity of where Crippen’s remains were found than at other locations, said Bernardi. It is believed that Kyle Crosby killed Crippen in the early morning hours of December 31 and transported her remains to Maryland on January 8, Bernardi said.
The couple lived in Mount Laurel, in southern New Jersey, with their infant daughter and Crippen’s 7-year-old daughter. Her disappearance was brought to the attention of law enforcement officers after school officials contacted the Mount Laurel Police Department on January 7 and requested a wellness check at the family’s residence, Bernardi said. The request came after neither parent was present to pick up the older daughter at the end of the school day.
The same day, he said, Kyle Crosby signed a missing person report indicating he had not seen his wife since January 1.
The result in this case was the ultimate evil.
“Domestic violence is a terrible scourge on our society. The result in this case was the ultimate evil,” said Bernardi. “Kyle Crosby took the life of his wife, the woman he pledged to love and honor. We will seek justice for Erica, but that will never erase the pain of her loss felt so strongly by her family.”
Besides the murder count, Crosby faces two child endangerment counts and single counts of desecrating human remains and hindering apprehension. He pleaded not guilty Thursday.
Jo Crosby, his 67-year-old mother, faces counts of hindering apprehension and tampering with or fabricating physical evidence. The suspect’s mother was charged because the investigation revealed she provided significant assistance to her son as he attempted to conceal his wife’s death, Bernardi explained. She was released on $12,500 bail.