By David Lohr

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October 16, 2006

BONAPARTE, Iowa (Crime Library)  — In her MySpace profile, 17-year-old Sheena Bentler describes herself as "5'3", brown hair, blue-green-gray eyes, three siblings, 2 nieces, and a few pets."  She lists "country and classic rock" as her favorite music and "Action, Horror, and Suspense" as her favorite types of movies.  In tune with her movie selections, she lists her reading interests as "murder mysteries and suspense." 

The summary in itself is no different then any typical teenagers MySpace profile.  The only thing setting hers apart is the fact that Sheena and her entire family are now all part of their own murder mystery.  Unfortunately this story is anything but fiction.

On Saturday the Van Buren County Sheriff's Department received an emergency 911 call at 3:38 a.m., from 23894 Hawk Drive — located just east of Bonaparte by the Des Moines River.  According to an Iowa Department of Criminal Investigation affidavit, the caller identified herself as 14-year-old Shayne Bentler. 

During the conversation, the young woman told the dispatcher her brother "was going to do something."  She also said her mother was yelling, "No Shawn, don't do it!"  The dispatcher then heard a loud noise in the background, consistent with a gun discharging.  Moments later the caller screamed "Shawn, no!" and the line went dead.

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Contact  David Lohr at           pa_crime_writer@velocity.net

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