Allegheny County police said they used an iPad to track down the suspected killer of a Baldwin man who was found shot dead in his home.
Officers charged Adam Rosenberg, 21, of Fox Chapel with criminal homicide, robbery, tampering with evidence and firearms violations.
Jeremy Dentel, 28, was shot once in his Baldwin home about 6:10 p.m. Feb. 16, but his body was not discovered until more than 24 hours later when his parents asked police to check on him, officials said.
One spent 9 mm casing was found near Dentel’s body, according to a criminal complaint filed against Rosenberg. That casing matched ammunition found at Rosenberg’s house, police said.
Rosenberg allegedly told police he had started a relationship with Dentel on the “Find Men” app, and the two later began communicating by text.
Police said Dentel’s iPhone was not at the homicide scene, but they used his iPad to look at messaging between the two men that began Feb. 12. There were nine text messages between the pair on the day Dentel was killed.
Cell tower location data showed both Dentel’s and Rosenberg’s phones pinging about 7 p.m. on Mt. Royal Boulevard in Shaler and then at Bottomfield Street in Etna.
Video surveillance from a neighbor’s home showed a four-door sedan traveling near Dentel’s home about 6:10 p.m. A witness told police that at about 6:15 p.m., they heard the front screen door open to their home, near Dentel’s, and thought someone was trying to force their way in. The witness, believing it might be a family member without a key, yelled, “Hang on.”
The man at the door was startled and apologized, saying he was at the wrong house, according to the complaint.
Video shows the man then walking onto Dentel’s porch and the screen door opening for him to enter.
Police said he walked out 50 seconds later.
There were no visible signs of forced entry at Dentel’s house when police went to check on him, according to the criminal complaint. The back door was secured with a deadbolt, police said.
Rosenberg is in the Allegheny County Jail in Pittsburgh while he awaits arraignment.
