A 32-year-old man from Levittown, Pennsylvania, has been charged with first-degree murder, abuse of a corpse, and possession of an instrument of crime after brutally decapitating his father and displaying the head in a YouTube video.
The shocking incident unfolded on Tuesday evening in Middletown Township, Bucks County, prompting a joint investigation by the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office and Middletown Township Police Department, with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
The victim, identified as 68-year-old Michael F. Mohn, was found beheaded in the bathroom of their home on the 100 block of Upper Orchard Drive.
The grisly discovery was made by the victim’s wife, who contacted authorities. Upon arrival, police discovered the macabre scene, with the elderly man’s head placed inside a plastic bag in a cooking pot in a first-floor bedroom.
Justin Mohn, the victim’s son, had left the area in his father’s vehicle.
Hours later, he was apprehended about 100 miles away from the crime scene by the Fort Indiantown Gap Police Department in Lebanon County, where he was taken into custody without incident.
The investigation took a bizarre turn as authorities uncovered a 14-minute video posted on YouTube by Mohn himself.
In the video titled “Mohn’s Militia – Call to Arms for American Patriots,” he is seen wearing clear rubber gloves similar to those found at the crime scene. Shockingly, Mohn lifts and displays his father’s decapitated head while spouting conspiracy theories and branding his father a “traitor to his country” for working in the federal government for 20 years.
“The crime itself is not something we typically see here,” remarked Middletown Township Police Captain Pete Feeney.
Authorities are actively reviewing the video as part of the ongoing investigation. The video had garnered over 5,000 views before being taken down by social media platforms.
Police were able to track Mohn’s location through his cell phone, leading them to Fort Indiantown Gap. The area was briefly put on lockdown as police located the abandoned Toyota Corolla he was driving outside the Indiantown Gap National Guard training facility.
Mohn, was reportedly armed but arrested without incident.
Justin Mohn was arraigned by Magisterial District Judge Lisa J. Gaier who sent him to Bucks County Correctional Facility without bail.
Residents in the quiet neighborhood expressed shock and unease at the gruesome incident.
Mohn is scheduled for a hearing on February 8, and the motive behind the brutal killing remains under investigation.
This case is being investigated by Detectives with the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office and the Middletown Township Police Department, with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Fort Indiantown Gap Police Department.
This case is assigned for prosecution to Deputy District Attorney Ashley C. Towhey and Assistant District Attorney Christine Sassane.
According to the affidavit of probable cause, Middletown Township Police responded to the home shortly before 5 p.m., after they “received information” about a video that had been posted to YouTube.
The decapitated body of Michael Mohn was found in a downstairs bathroom with a large amount of blood around him by the victim’s wife, Denice Mohn.
“A machete was observed in the bathtub, as well as a large kitchen knife,” the affidavit said. “Officers also located the deceased male’s head inside of a plastic bag which was inside of a cooking pot in a first-floor bedroom next to the bathroom.”
Police also found rubber gloves, with what appeared to be blood on them, in a second-floor bedroom.
Denice Mohn told police that when she had arrived home, a 2009 Toyota Corolla, which belonged to her husband, and her son, Justin Mohn, were missing.