On Sunday at 4:25 p.m., newlywed Keris Riebel, 22, was in the store at 1120 Wyandot Ave. in Upper Sandusky when a man identified as Bethel Bekele, 27, allegedly came in waving a machete, Upper Sandusky Police said in a statement.
Bekele allegedly “approached Riebel and struck her numerous times with the machete,” police said.
Officers raced to the scene after receiving calls that a man with a machete was inside the store and had struck an employee, police said.
Riebel was dead when officers arrived, theToledo Bladereports.
Keris and Jordan Riebel.GoFundMe
Officers searched the area for the suspect, who had fled the scene. They found him in the 100 block of South Fifth Street, police said.
Bekele was in a parked car near the Wyandot County Sheriff’s Office and surrendered when officers approached,WCBE reports. He was arrested and charged with murder.
At this time, the motive is unclear, police said.
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The attack has left the community shaken.
Bethel Bekele.Upper Sandusky Police Department
Promising Future with Husband ‘Ripped Apart’
As police continue to investigate, Riebel’s family is grieving her loss.
In aGoFundMeaccount set up to help Riebel’s husband, Jordan Riebel, with funeral expenses and lost wages to take time off to grieve, his aunt, Amber Geiser, wrote that the two “were newlyweds who had a bright future ahead of them.”
“Anyone who met the two could see how much love and adoration they had for each other,” she wrote.
“Keris was a beautiful soul and anyone who met her would say how sweet and kind she was,” she wrote.
Riedel had just graduated from college with a Bachelor’s degree in human resources.
“She was looking forward to starting her career,” she wrote.
“Jordan and Keris were also looking forward to having children and most recently a puppy and starting their new lives together,” she said.
But their future “was ripped apart from the both of them in a matter of seconds.”
Wynford Local Schools, from which Riebel had graduated in 2019, called her “a beautiful soul, with a faith-filled heart. She exuded genuine kindness to everyone she met and her smile was unforgettable. Keris was taken way too soon and will forever live in the hearts of the Wynford Community.”
It is unclear whether Bekele has entered a plea or retained an attorney who can speak on his behalf.
source: people.com
