Suspect in UMW Student's Death Appears in Court Tuesday

Image: Steven Vander Briel (Fredericksburg Police Department)

Homicide suspect Steven Vander Briel appeared in court in Fredericksburg Tuesday morning for his arraignment on charges of first-degree homicide and abduction.

Grace Rebecca Mann, 20, died Friday after being found unconscious in the house that she shared with Briel and two other roommates, according to the Fredericksburg police. She was a student at Mary Washington University; Briel was also a UMW student.

Briel fled the house when police arrived at about 3 p.m. Friday, and he was apprehended about two hours and a half hours later after a citywide manhunt and alerts to the public.

On Monday, Fredericksburg police said they had not determined a motive for the slaying, the Free Lance-Star reported.

Funeral services for Grace Mann took place Tuesday morning, as hundreds gathered at a Falls Church synagogue.

The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner said that Mann died of asphyxiation by strangulation, according to Natatia Bledsoe, a spokeswoman for the Fredericksburg Police Department.

In the General District Court on Tuesday, Vander Briel, 30, was assigned a public defender. His next date in court was scheduled for May 19, and he is being held at the Rappahannock Regional Jail under no bond.