Riley Crossman was a 15-year-old Berkeley Springs High School student who was murdered by a 43-year-old man named Andy McCauley. This tragic incident took place in May 2019. According to Metro News, on the fateful night, McCauley entered the teenager’s bedroom and suffocated her with a pillow.
On May 8, Riley’s mother woke up and discovered that her daughter’s bedroom was empty. Initially, she believed that Riley had walked to school. However, according to WHSV, the school sent her a text that revealed that her daughter was absent. This prompted her to call the police and file a missing report. Gradually, the West Virginia Natural Resources Police found the teenager’s corpse in the 5500 block of Tuscarora Pike.
According to The Journal, Riley’s exact cause of death could not be determined from her autopsy report. This is because her body was highly decomposed. However, first Deputy Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Pitor Kubbizcek said that the 15-year-old’s death was due to homicide by unspecified means.
The heartbreaking case will be discussed in detail in the upcoming episode of Murder in the Heartland on ID. The episode is titled “Something Happened to Her.” It will air on ID on December 13, 2023, at 9:00 pm ET.
The official synopsis of Something Happened to Her reads,
“Popular high school student Riley Crossman disappears, igniting a statewide search; investigators discover her body, and they have their hands full when the students and residents of Berkeley Springs become suspects.”
Did Andy McCauley know Riley Crossman?
The 43-year-old Andy McCauley was dating Riley Crossman’s mother, Chantel Oakley, when he killed the teenager. According to Metro News, during MuCauley’s trial, Panhandle News Network reporter Marsha Chwalik said,
“The community is still in a lot of pain, but this gives them a chance to move on. The only regret I heard today from Prosecutor Dan James is he believes this would have been a prime candidate for the death penalty if West Virginia had that.”
According to DC News Now, In November 2021, the Morgan County Court sentenced Andy McCauley to two life sentences for his horrific crime.
