Stepfather charged with murder five years after New Hampshire girl’s disappearance
The stepfather of an 11-year-old New Hampshire girl whose disappearance and murder has remained unsolved for nearly five years was arrested Monday and charged with the girl’s death.
Wendell Noyes, now 52, lived with Celina Cass in an apartment in West Stewartstown, New Hampshire, when she disappeared the night of July 26, 2011. A massive manhunt ensued, and her body was later found August 1 in the Connecticut River, just a half-mile from her home.
Noyes is charged with second-degree murder, New Hampshire Attorney General Joseph Foster said in a statement. Investigators say he killed his stepdaughter by submerging her body in the river.
Reached Monday, Associate Attorney General Jane E. Young said she couldn’t comment on what led to Noyes’ arrest almost five years after the killing. In February, the Associated Press reported that a major crimes squad truck was parked outside Noyes’ trailer.
Celina Cass
The case drew national attention, with dozens of investigators searching for Cass in the days before she was found.
Cass lived with Noyes, her sister, her mother, Luisa Cass, and the 22-year-son of one of her mother’s former boyfriends when she was last seen at the family computer around 9 p.m. on July 26, 2011. Her mother later separated from Noyes, who had a history of psychiatric issues, court documents showed.
He was found unfit to stand trial in 2003 after being charged with breaking into an ex-girlfriend’s house and threatening her.
In October, WMUR reported that Noyes was charged with trespassing, resisting arrest, and simple assault after police said he violated orders to stay away from certain stores, and tampered with a utility meter box.
Noyes will be arraigned on the murder charge Tuesday afternoon in New Hampshire Circuit Court in Berlin, authorities said.
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