Allison Wood | The Gazette

MEDINA — Fingerprints belonging to Shaun Cleland were found on the side of the sliding glass door at the Brunswick apartment where he is accused of killing his estranged wife’s boyfriend in 2005.

Cleland, 28, is charged with aggravated murder and six other counts for allegedly strangling David Heinricht, 19, to death in the living room of the Clearbrook Drive apartment Heinricht shared with Cleland’s estranged wife, Christina Eichelberger, late the night of Oct. 1, 2005.

Cleland allegedly climbed onto the roof and dropped down to the apartment balcony, where he entered by opening the unlocked sliding door where the fingerprints were found, Brunswick Detective Scott Schmitt testified Friday in Common Pleas Judge James L. Kimbler’s court.

On a videotape shown in court Thursday of a police interview, Cleland said he entered the apartment while Eichelberger and Heinricht were at work. He admitted to looking around and became angry when he saw a box of naked pictures of his wife along with lingerie “all over the place.”

When Heinricht arrived home at about 11:40 p.m., Cleland said on the videotape they exchanged a few words and started fighting. He admitted to putting a noose around Heinricht’s neck and choking him.

“I just couldn’t stop,” Cleland told Brunswick Detective Dean Weinhardt, who conducted the interview.

Cleland allegedly placed a typed suicide note in Heinricht’s hand to make it look like the 19-year-old hanged himself.

Schmitt testified he was present at the interview, where Cleland said Heinricht had a pulse when he left the apartment.

Eichelberger, who has since divorced Cleland, testified Wednesday she left her Brunswick workplace at about 12:30 a.m. Oct. 2 and found Heinricht’s body when she got home.

Schmitt testified he took Eichelberger to the Brunswick Police Department soon thereafter for questioning. He said she kept saying she knew Cleland had strangled Heinricht and he was boarding a flight back to Hawaii, where he was stationed with the Army, early in the morning at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport.

At that point, Schmitt said the department called Cleveland police to alert them of the situation.
Cleland was arrested at the airport several hours later after he checked in at a ticket counter, Sgt. Daniel Hayes of the Cleveland Police Department testified Friday.

A loss prevention associate from Wal-Mart also testified Friday and presented a surveillance tape of Cleland purchasing an air gun, knife, binoculars and other items at the Strongsville location on the afternoon of Oct. 1.

Cleland pleaded guilty to the charges in 2006, but the 9th District Court of Appeals threw the pleas out and sent the case back to common pleas court. Cleland could be sentenced to life in prison without parole if convicted.

The trial resumes at 9 a.m. Monday.

Contact Allison Wood at (330) 721-4050 or allisonwood@ohio.net.

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