Man accused of murdering teacher was her future son-in-law
STRONGSVILLE, Ohio — A man charged with fatally stabbing and shooting a popular middle school teacher was engaged to her daughter, police said Tuesday.
Authorities arrested and charged 20-year-old Jeffrey Scullin Jr. with aggravated murder. Scullin and the victim’s daughter were supposed to be married last Saturday, four days after the slaying, according to an online registry.
Strongsville Police Chief Mark Fender said the suspect had been living in the home where 49-year-old Melinda Pleskovic was found with stab wounds to her back. A medical examiner said she died of “gunshot wounds and sharp force injuries.”
It’s not clear yet whether Scullin has an attorney. He was being held on a $1 million bond.
Police released little information and would not say whether the suspect was linked to a series of attempted break-ins and suspicious activities at the home in the months leading up to the killing.
The victim’s husband told 911 dispatchers after finding Pleskovic’s body on Oct. 24 that people had been trying to break into their home “all year.”
“I just got in the door with my new son-in-law,” Bruce Pleskovic told a dispatcher.
Just days before, police investigated a report that an unknown man tried to enter the home by forcing open the back door.
Records show police investigated a report of a theft from a car in January, and they went to the house again in July to investigate a suspicious person.
Officers also were called in September when Melinda Pleskovic told officers a set of car keys were missing and that she kept finding her car unlocked and the alarm kept going off.