LH Man Charged in Relation to Body Found

By LaKeshia Knarr

LOCK HAVEN – A Lock Haven man is being arraigned today, Wednesday, Dec. 28, in relation to the woman’s body that was found last Thursday morning at an apartment in the city, city police report.

Rodney Heaton, approximately 53, is charged with identity theft, access device fraud, theft, theft by deception and receiving stolen property, according to Det. Sgt. Kristin Sager.

Heaton was in the Clinton County Correctional Facility on a warrant for driving under the influence when city police charged him Tuesday evening in relation to the woman’s body, Sager said.

Sager couldn’t publicly disclose details about Heaton’s relationship to the deceased woman, whose identity has not yet been released.

An autopsy on the woman’s body was conducted Friday, Dec. 22, however the cause and manner of death are pending further anatomic evaluation and toxicology results, Clinton County Coroner Zach Hanna said.

“She had been there for an extended period of time before she was found,” the coroner said, calling the matter “suspicious.”

Hanna said the identity of the woman has not yet been confirmed and is pending DNA testing.

The woman’s body was found around 9 a.m. last Thursday by a maintenance crew tasked with cleaning out an apartment at 5 Corning St.

The coroner was unsure if she was a tenant of the apartment building.

Questioned about rumors suggesting the woman’s body was found inside a rolled up carpet, after it had been tossed from a second floor balcony as the apartment was being cleaned out, Sager said she could not comment as the investigation is ongoing.

While Hanna said he hopes to have updates this week, he said it will take a few weeks to receive the toxicology test results.

City police responded to the incident, and cordoned off Corning Street to the public as the investigation began. The state police Records and Identification Unit assisted city police at the scene.

Courthouse records list R&W Real Estate as the property owner.

Details about Heaton’s arraignment and the charges against him will be announced upon release.