Upper Sandusky machete killing was 'random,' court documents say

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WSYX) — There was "little relationship" between the woman and the man accused of killing her with a machete at a Dollar Tree store, a prosecutor wrote Tuesday.

Court documents filed in Upper Sandusky Municipal Court shed light on the crime that has shaken the small town of fewer than 7,000 residents.

Wyandot County Prosecuting Attorney Eric Figlewicz called the attack "random, sudden, and unprovoked" in his written argument for denying bond for the defendant, 27-year-old Bethel Bekele, who is charged with murder.

Figlewicz accused Bekele of continuing to attack the 22-year-old cashier Keris L. Riebel as she was on the ground.

Bekele, the prosecutor said, resided in Wyandot County for less than six months and spent the majority of his life in North Carolina.

In the probable cause affidavit, Upper Sandusky Police Chief Jared Lucas said that surveillance captured the killing, and Bekele reportedly admitted to the attack to a detective from the Wyandot County Major Crimes Unit.

The judge ordered that Bekele be detained until a hearing on Jan. 11 to decide whether the court will deny bail.