Pa. councilman charged with 1979 killing

Associated Press

BRIDGEWATER, Pa.

A Pennsylvania borough councilman has been charged with strangling his lover more than 30 years ago in a case that ran cold until advances in DNA technology helped secure the man’s arrest.

Bridgewater Councilman Gregory Scott Hopkins has been charged with criminal homicide in the 1979 death of 23-year-old Catherine Walsh, of Monaca. A criminal complaint says her father found her lying face down on her bed with her hands bound and a bandanna wrapped around her neck.

The 65-year-old Hopkins was arrested Sunday. His attorney says he’ll vigorously investigate and defend the case.

State police began to re-examine the evidence two years ago. They say a search warrant was used to collect DNA evidence from Hopkins in December, and an analysis confirmed a match with semen at the scene.