Murder remains unsolved, 10 years later - Conway Daily Sun

PINKHAM NOTCH — Authorities are turning to the public for help solving a murder of a Quebec woman whose body was discovered on Thanksgiving Day 10 years ago.

The Attorney General and State Police put out a joint statement Tuesday asking for information about the murder of Louise Chaput, a 52-year-old Sherbrooke social worker who disappeared when visiting the White Mountains in November 2001. Investigators are looking for anyone who may have seen her on Nov. 15, 2001, the last day she was seen alive.

The state's cold case unit is investigating the murder.

"It's a case we've been working on since it happened," said senior assistant attorney general Jeffery Strelzin. Investigators are hoping the 10-year anniversary can "put it back in the public's eye."

Chaput was a self-employed psychologist, according to the statement, who often hiked alone. She made arrangements to stay overnight at the AMC lodge in Pinkham Notch on Nov. 15, 2001, a Friday, but she never checked into her room. Her body was found the following Thursday a short distance from a nearby trailhead.

Records confirm Chaput's car crossed entered the United States in Norton, Vt., at 11:45 a.m. of that day, the statement said, and a credit card receipt found in her car put Chaput at a Colebrook convenience store roughly an hour later.

Around 3 p.m. an AMC Pinkham Notch employee spoke with Chaput.

"Chaput told the employee that she had been driving a long time and asked where she could go for a short hike," the statement said. "The employee directed Chaput across the street from the lodge to the Lost Pond Trail. Chaput left the lodge and was not heard from again."

Louise Chaput's family reported her missing on Nov. 19, 2001, according to the statement. Her silver Ford Focus car was found parked at the Diretissima Trail Head the next day. Searchers looked for Chaput over the following days, to no avail.

Mountain Rescue Service president Rick Wilcox was on the search.

"The search started on Monday or Tuesday," he said, but after several days searchers still hadn't found Chaput. Fish and Game declined an offer by volunteers to continue searching on Thanksgiving Day, but Fish and Game officers themselves didn't take the day off.

They found her body in an area searchers thought they had previously gone over, Wilcox said, just a short distance from the parking lot. "She was 200 feet up in the woods."

This was before searchers all had handheld global positioning units, Wilcox said, which make for more thorough searches.

The autopsy determined Chaput's death was a homicide, according to the joint statement. She died of multiple cuts and stab wounds.

During searches of Chaput's car and belongings, investigators discovered Chaput's dark blue sleeping bag and blue backpack with a Canadian insignia on it were missing. The sleeping bag was "Kanuk" brand. Chaput's car keys and a pendant with an "S" design were also never located. It is also possible some of Chaput's clothing and personal effects went missing as well, the statement said.

"The randomness of it is what's really scary," Wilcox said, and that no one saw anything.

Authorities are hoping, however, that someone did see something and maybe didn't realize the importance of the what they saw. They are asking anyone with information about the murder or who may have seen Chaput on Nov. 15, 2001, to contact the cold case unit at (603) 223-3856 or coldcaseunit@dos.nh.gov.

Read More @ Source

Criminal Stories Here

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Homicide victim found at vacant Everett house

Image
EVERETT -- Police on Wednesday were canvassing the View Ridge-Madison neighborhood in Everett after a man was found dead there the night before. A neighbor spotted the man on the ground outside a vacant house at 22 Madison St. He called 911 about 6:20 p.m. The man had obvious signs of trauma to his torso, police said. He looked to be in his late 20s or early 30s. The Everett Major Crimes Unit is investigating the death as a homicide, Lt. Robert Goetz said. Detectives declined to say more about how they believe the man may have died. There are no identified suspects or motives. Detectives received a search warrant around 11:45 p.m. Tuesday and collected evidence at the scene. They returned Wednesday afternoon to look for clues in the daylight, Goetz said. The victim's identity had not been determined as of late Wednesday afternoon. The body was turned over to the Snohomish County Medical Examiner's Office. Anyone with information is asked to call 425-257-8450. Rikki King: 425-
Keep reading

Manslaughter charges possible in boy's death

Image
Published: Thursday, August 23, 2012, 5:55 p.m. MONROE -- Detectives believe a 7-year-old Monroe boy's parents should face second-degree manslaughter charges in connection with his January overdose death. Monroe police this week wrapped up their probe into the boy's Jan. 30 death and forwarded the case to prosecutors to decide if his parents should face criminal charges. Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Lisa Paul likely will begin reviewing the case in the coming days. She doesn't expect to make a charging decision in the near future, however. "It's quite an extensive investigation, and I want to review it thoroughly before I make any decision," she said. The boy, identified as "A.J." in court papers, ingested a lethal amount of salicylates, a chemical common in aspirin and other over-the-counter drugs. The medical examiner declined to conduct an autopsy on the boy, making it difficult to determine how the drug ended up in the boy's system. A
Keep reading