Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Gay Bashing Nextel User Leaves Phone Behind At Crime Scene-

From: Marcel <[email-masked]>
Date: Sat, 18 Jan 2003 15:01:58 -0500

Gay Bashing Nextel User Leaves Phone Behind At Crime Scene-
January 16, 2003
Pottstown, PA

A Pottstown man facing a possible death sentence for the murders of a married couple in
November has been charged with brutally beating and robbing the bartender of a gay bar in
Erie in October, according to police.

Matthew Esh-bach has been in prison since Nov. 23, after police said he confessed to the
murders of Kerry and Katherine Sch-adler, whose bodies were discovered in an East Coventry
park the previous day. Also charged with the murders is Michael McGrory, 29, of North
Coventry.

Erie Police had little to go on when they investigated the robbery and brutal beating of
the bartender of the Zone dance club on Oct. 22. All they had was a severely beaten victim
whose wounds required 50 staples and 100 stitches to close, and a cell phone that was left
behind during the attack.

Investigators obtained a court order for the phone records and found out the yellow and
black Nextel belonged to Eshbach, according to police. Further investigation by Erie
Police revealed Eshbach, 27, was in custody for the Schadler murders.

That was when they obtained a photograph of their suspect and showed it to the victim,
Aaron Whitman. Whitman picked the photo out of a lineup, identifying Eshbach as one of the
four men who beat him with a pool cue in October, according to police.

Whitman said Eshbach and three other men -- who have yet to be identified -- were drinking
in the Zone Dance Club the night of Oct. 22. Police said the bar was a known gay bar and
that all five men were "hanging out" prior to the attack. In fact, Whitman invited the men
to stay late as he closed the bar, according to police. It was about 5 a.m. when Whitman
said, out of nowhere, he was struck on the back of the head with something and knocked to
the ground.

Police said Eshbach punched, kicked and beat Whitman with a pool cue until he was
unconscious. Whitman later woke up and found himself lying in a pool of his own blood,
according to police. The robbers made off with $728 from the cash register.

Police are still trying to determine the identity of the other three suspects, but it’s
expected the victim will be shown photos of Travis Drumheller, Ian Taylor, Joshua Sheeler
and McGrory.

With the exception of Drumheller, the men are charged with committing four robberies last
year -- three in Pottstown and one near Phoenixville. Drumheller is only charged with the
Pottstown robberies. Police have alleged the Schadler murders were committed because the
gang believed Kerry Schadler had gone to police with information about the robberies,
ostensibly to collect a $5,000 reward.

But the reward was just a figment of the men’s imagination, and the concern over being
ratted out was pure paranoia, according to police. The Schadlers never went to police. In
fact, they refused to cooperate with the investigation, according to prosecutors. The only
reason they knew about the robberies was because Sheeler was in their apartment bragging
about the crimes and flashing wads of cash, according to court records.

Aggravating factors abound in the case, according to prosecutors. Because the murders were
committed in connection with a kidnapping, because they were done to prevent someone from
giving information to police, and because Katherine Schadler was 22 weeks pregnant at the
time of her death -- a detail known to both McGrory and Eshbach -- it’s a death penalty
case, prosecutors said.

Before the Erie robbery charges were filed, police believed Eshbach’s motive in the
murders was to protect Drumheller -- his nephew. Now that Eshbach has been implicated in a
robbery, and a violent one at that, that motive will likely be reconsidered.

Drumheller has not been implicated in the Schadler murders, nor has Taylor or Sheeler. But
Drumheller is being charged in connection with two deaths last year, according to court
records.

He is facing two counts of vehicular homicide for his role in the Route 100 drag-racing
accident that left two people dead last summer, according to court records. That case has
yet to go to trial.

A preliminary hearing for the robbery of the La Taverna restaurant, located on Route 23
near Phoenixville, has been scheduled for Feb. 3 in Pottstown.

A court date for the Erie robbery has not yet been scheduled. In addition to robbery,
Eshbach faces aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and possessing an instrument of
crime charges. He is currently being held without bail in Chester County Prison.

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