Boyfriend faces murder charges for allegedly strangling MU student

The man who confessed to striking his girlfriend before she died is charged with murder after authorities said the confession was a lie and the victim died of strangulation.

Gregorio Orrostieta, 19, is charged with murder after an autopsy found Karlie Hall, 18, a Millersville University freshman, was strangled and beaten to death.

Hundreds of Millersville University students had sought on-campus counseling since Hall was found dead in her dorm room Sunday morning.

School spokeswoman Janet Kacskos said counselors treated students from 7 a.m. until 11 p.m. on Sunday, and will continue to keep those hours throughout the rest of this week.

“The counselors give the students whatever they need,” Kacskos said.

Hall, of Chadds Ford, was found unresponsive around 5 a.m. by Millersville University Police Officers attending to a reported cardiac arrest.

According to the police affidavit, Orrostieta was found “kneeling over Hall and attempting to administer CPR.”

Orrostieta had “blood smeared on his face and a cut on his forehead, his shirt was ripped, he had visible scratch marks on his chest, blood was all over his hands and on his jeans.”

The affidavit says that Hall and Orrostieta, 19, of Kennett Square, had a verbal confrontation at a party on Saturday night. When they reconciled and returned to Hall’s dorm room in Bard Hall around 1:30 a.m., Orrostieta said they fought again.

“Orrostieta admitted to shoving Hall hard enough to knock her onto the ground where she struck her head on a chair,” then he gave her a “backhand to the face, at which time the altercation ceased when Hall became unresponsive,” the affidavit states.

Orrostieta was first charged with aggravated assault in connection with Hall’s death.

At a press conference Monday, authorities announced the results of the autopsy showed Hall’s death was a homicide and said they would charge Orrostieta.