Man Accused of Killing Transient Makes Court Appearance

A post-indictment arraignment was scheduled Tuesday in Riverside for Edward Louis Abbenhaus, who is accused of killing a homeless man near Interstate 10 in Beaumont on Jan. 5.

Abbenhaus, 53, was a transient and had been in the Banning-Beaumont area less than a week when Mark Steven Burley was killed, according to Beaumont police. 

Police responded about 4:10 p.m. Jan.  5 and found Burley's remains between the 10 and the westbound Beaumont Avenue off-ramp. The Riverside County coroner concluded the death was a homicide and that Burley died of blunt force head injuries.

The coroner listed Burley's hometown as Beaumont but did not determine his age.

Abbenhaus was arrested Jan.  6 in Cabazon. He has been held since then on $1 million bail on suspicion of murder, according to inmate records. He was being housed at the Southwest Detention Center in Murrieta.