A stalker strangled a bride-to-be, bound her mouth with tape, and set her North Carolina apartment on fire, all while her fiancé was at his bucks party.
27-year-old Amanda Strous was found in the house on June 18 wearing only her bikini bottoms. She was rushed to hospital with burn injuries and blunt force injuries, however she died when she arrived at the hospital.
CBS reports that 28-year-old Matthew Thomas Benner has been charged with first-degree arson and murder for the crime, and he confessed two days after Strous died.
It does not appear that Benner and Strous knew each other, and authorities believe that he was stalking her.
Strous’ fiancé, Cory McCleaf, was devastated by the murder. The pair were due to be married on July 30.
“She lit up a room when she walked in. Her smile was just one of those things that people had to be with. When she smiled they smiled,” He told WSOCTV.com.
“She was the light of my world. She was one of the most positive people I’ve ever been around.”
