Autopsy Set On Slain Bellevueite -- Woman, 35, Found Dead In Bed; Police Say There Are No Suspects

BELLEVUE - An autopsy is scheduled today for a Bellevue woman who was found murdered in her bed early yesterday.

Bellevue police say Carol Marie Beethe, 35, who lived in the 1600 block of 166th Avenue Northeast, suffered head injuries, but add that the actual cause of death will be determined by the autopsy.

The woman's nude body was found when her 13-year-old daughter tried to awaken her.

Police spent the day questioning acquaintances, neighbors and the dead woman's companion. Police spokesman Lt. Steve Bourgette said there are no suspects.

A neighbor saw Beethe arrive home alone about 2:45 a.m., said Detective Lt. Mark Ericks. Indications are that she was dead six to eight hours before police arrived.

There were no signs of a struggle inside the home, Ericks said, nor was there evidence of forced entry.

``Neighbors and others we have talked to say she was a bubbly, happy, outgoing person,'' Ericks said.

Beethe worked as bartender at the Cucina! Cucina! Italian restaurant at Bellevue Place in downtown Bellevue.

Beethe's death was the third homicide in Bellevue this year.

Faye Chan Monwai, 71, was shot and strangled as she ate lunch in her Somerset home Feb. 15. The case remains unsolved.

Police still are probing the death of Mary Ann Pohlreich, a 27-year-old Bellevue Community College student, whose nude body was discovered June 22 near a restaurant in East Bellevue. She was killed by a blow to the head with a blunt object.