Man brushed off brutal rape, murder of 'businesswoman': DA
Share this @internewscast.com

Left inset: Travis Collins (Harrisburg Bureau of Police/CRIMEWATCH). Right inset: Ashley Sarazen (Siwicki – Yanicko Funeral Home). Background: The Harrisburg Hilton on Second Street in Harrisburg, Pa., where Travis Collins is accused of beating Ashley Sarazen to death (Google Maps).

A man from Pennsylvania is facing trial, accused of assaulting and murdering a woman at a Hilton Hotel. According to reports, he was intoxicated throughout the day and met her at a nearby bar, later telling authorities that she was his “lady of the night” and had initiated an attack—leading him to respond with “a few combos,” as per police records.

“I think I broke her neck,” said Travis Collins, age 32, during a 911 call made to the Harrisburg Bureau of Police after allegedly killing Ashley Sarazen, 38, on August 4, as reported by PennLive.

“I don”t remember,” Collins allegedly told the dispatcher. “She fell on the bed and started bleeding.”

Upon receiving the 911 alert, officers reached the Harrisburg Hilton Hotel on Second Street at 3:10 a.m., where they discovered Sarazen deceased in a hotel room with severe injuries that rendered her nearly unrecognizable, according to PennLive. Investigators stated that Sarazen, who was visiting from the Pittsburgh area, encountered Collins at the Bourbon Street Saloon on Second Street earlier that evening. The bar is located a short distance from the Hilton and the Crowne Plaza hotel, where Collins was reportedly staying with a friend.

The pair was bar-hopping in Harrisburg after traveling there from Collins’ home in Kempton, which is about 70 minutes away, per PennLive.

At the scene, officers reportedly engaged in conversation with Collins, who claimed that an altercation with Sarazen forced him to act in self-defense. “That [expletive] thing in here,” he allegedly remarked about Sarazen and the incident. “JFK ain’t lying dead in that room, it’s some fat hooker,” Collins added, as stated by investigators.

Local ABC affiliate WHTM reported that Sarazen was apparently strangled to death.

During the opening of Collins’ trial on Monday, Chief Deputy District Attorney Steve Zawisky informed jurors that Sarazen was a “businesswoman” who frequently visited Harrisburg for her work with juvenile criminal offenders, and she had met Collins while out drinking, as stated by PennLive. Authorities reported that her blood alcohol content (BAC) was .30, nearly quadruple the local legal driving threshold, whereas Collins’ BAC ranged from .175 to .213.

The pair went up to Sarazen’s hotel room that night after meeting and spent about an hour and 10 minutes together before Collins called his friend and allegedly said, “I [expletive] up, she’s dead,” according to prosecutors. Phone records show him allegedly talking to the pal for more than 15 minutes before Collins called 911 at around 3:06 a.m. and reported what happened.

Zawisky told jurors on Monday that Collins — who is 6 feet, 2 inches tall and about 270 pounds — changed his story multiple times about what occurred.

He allegedly settled on the claim that Sarazen, who is 5 feet, 1 inch tall and 120 pounds, “ambushed” him after he caught her rummaging through his wallet, telling cops she ripped the hotel’s landline phone out of the wall and attacked him with it, Zawisky said.

Collins denied having sexual contact with Sarazen, but her autopsy showed signs of sexual assault and her body had Collins’ DNA on it, with police finding a bite mark that he allegedly gave Sarazen on her buttocks, according to prosecutors. “You got me walking down this hallway like Cyrus ‘The Virus,'” Zawisky recalled Collins telling an officer after arriving at the Harrisburg police station, in reference to actor John Malkovich’s character — a psychopath and rapist — in the 1997 movie “Con Air.”

“Ya see this? I did this to myself,” Collins allegedly told police at one point about a paper-cut-sized scratch on his forehead, which he previously claimed Sarazen had caused.

“Nah, I’m just joking,” Collins allegedly said.

While being taken into custody, Collins allegedly told the officer who transported him that he had paid Sarazen to sleep with him that night.

“Ya hire a lady of the night and she tries to rob you,” he allegedly said. “She got the short end of that stick.”

Collins’ attorney, Jessica Bush, did not try denying the evidence and comments stacked up against Collins. She instead argued that he did not kill Sarazen with intent or malice, meaning his case does not meet the legal standard for convicting him of first-degree murder, which is the charge against him. Bush told jurors that Collins drunkenly overreacted that night after seeing Sarazen allegedly going through his wallet and he was too intoxicated to tell right from wrong. She blamed Sarazen’s death directly on Collins’ alleged drinking binge, claiming it started around lunchtime, PennLive reports.

Zawisky said it was hard to believe the allegations due to Sarazen’s condition when found by police.

“[Collins’ story] doesn’t even take into account the damage and destruction to her lower body, including her organs,” Zawisky told the jury, with him noting how Sarazen suffered severe injuries caused by Collins’ alleged rape of her. “It was extreme, and it was overkill,” Zawisky recounted. “She never made it home because of that man.”

Collins allegedly has a history of violent attacks and incidents involving women. PennLive reports that he has been charged in the past for drunken outbursts against his cousin, a former neighbor, and a random couple at a bar. The murder trial is expected to continue through the week, with Collins’ facing life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Share this @internewscast.com
You May Also Like

Shocking Family Betrayal: Authorities Reveal Missing Man’s Gruesome Fate

Background: The area near the property where the remains of Roger Pitt…

Judge Hannah Dugan Faces Setbacks in Multiple Pretrial Motions

Background: Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan in court (WTMJ/YouTube). Left inset: Donald…

Mother Allegedly Attempts to Smother Crying Infant, Authorities Report

Share An Alabama mother has been accused of attempting to “smother” her…

Son Allegedly Assaults Parents and Sets Home Ablaze with Them Inside, Authorities Report

Background: The home in North Adams, Massachusetts, where the victims died (WWLP/YouTube).…

Shocking Crime Unveiled: Man Arrested for Grisly Head Stabbing and Dismemberment

Share In a chilling case out of Ohio, an individual is facing…

Breaking News: Celeste Rivas Faces LA County Grand Jury – Exclusive Details Inside

Prosecutors are advancing the investigation of a teenage girl found deceased in…

Federal Authorities Pursue Detention of Trump Threat Suspect for Alleged Bond Violation

Attorney General Pam Bondi speaks to reporters as President Donald Trump listens,…

Authorities Charge Four More Suspects and Seize Firearms Following Sydney Public Shooting

Another four men have been charged over a public place shooting in…

Amish Mother Accused of Drowning Son Found Fit for Trial Proceedings

An Ohio mother accused of fatally drowning her 4-year-old son at a…

Breakthrough Developments in the Skelton Brothers Case Offer New Hope

Fifteen long years have passed since the mysterious disappearance of Alexander, Andrew,…

Man Reportedly Stabbed in Road Rage Incident Involving Kitchen Knife

A shocking incident described by police as both “brazen and disgusting” unfolded…

Father Sentenced to Decades in Prison for Tragic Beating Death of Young Son

In a tragic turn of events, an Indiana father faces a lengthy…