Man tries killing relative in her 70s on Easter, then says she fell, OH cops say

A woman in her 70s was hospitalized on Easter Sunday after an attack Ohio police say was carried out by a relative, who is accused of lying about what happened.

The incident happened Sunday, April 20, at the Streetsboro home of 57-year-old Richard C. McNeal, Streetsboro Police Chief Tricia Wain said in a news release. McNeal told a 911 dispatcher his relative had fallen down the stairs and needed medical attention.

Authorities soon learned the woman in her 70s hadn’t fallen, Wain said. Instead, police said the victim was “violently assaulted.”

The victim remained conscious, police said, and she offered her account of what happened.

She said McNeal struck her in the back of the head with a “heavy hand tool similar to a mallet or a meat tenderizer,” Wain said.

Police said that when the victim tried to flee, McNeal “pushed her down the flight of stairs.”

The woman suffered critical injuries and defensive wounds, police said. She was taken to a hospital, where she was listed in serious condition.

A motive for the alleged attack is unclear. Police did not state how McNeal and the victim are related.

McNeal was jailed and charged with attempted murder.

Streetsboro is about a 30-mile drive southeast from Cleveland.