By Anna Groff with reports from LancasterOnline.com

On Dec. 14, 22-year-old Dereck Taylor Holt allegedly invaded a home in Lancaster (Pa.) County and assaulted three elderly Mennonite women for two hours and tied them up, according to a Dec. 17 article at LancasterOnline.com.

The women, ages 84 to 90, remained in the hospital as of Dec. 17. They were found by a relative several hours after the attack. Their names have not been released.

Also according to the LancasterOnline article, Holt is "believed to have targeted the women solely because of his as-of-yet unexplained hatred for members of the Mennonite faith." Holt is charged with aggravated assault and other eight other counts. Lancaster County District Attorney Craig Stedman did not know when Holt returned to Lancaster, as he had been away at college according to his Facebook page, said LancasterOnline.

Linda Espenshade of East Chestnut Street Mennonite Church, Lancaster, is a long-time friend and neighbor of the Holt family. East Chestnut Street is a Mennonite Church USA congregation ...

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