Nathan Carman — the Vermont man charged with killing his mother at sea off the coast of New England in 2016 — has died while awaiting trial, according to court documents filed on Thursday.
Carman, 29, of Vernon, Vermont, was scheduled to face trial in October in what prosecutors have said was a scheme to inherit millions of dollars.
Carman pleaded not guilty last year to fraud and first-degree murder in the death of his mother, Linda Carman of Middletown, Connecticut. He's also suspected of killing his grandfather several years earlier in Connecticut.
The New Hampshire Department of Justice said an autopsy report shows that Carman's death is not considered suspicious at this time.
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In September 2016, Carman arranged a fishing trip with his mother, during which prosecutors say he planned to kill her and report that his boat sank and his mother disappeared in the accident. He was found floating in an inflatable raft eight days after leaving a Rhode Island marina with his mother, who was never found. Prosecutors allege he altered the boat to make it more likely to sink. Carman denied that allegation.
The eight-count indictment also says Carman shot and killed his wealthy grandfather John Chakalos at the man’s home in Windsor, Conn., in 2013 as part of a scheme to obtain money and property from his grandfather’s estate. But the indictment does not charge him with murder in his death.
Chakalos’ three surviving daughters — Carman’s aunts — said in a statement Thursday that they were “deeply saddened” to hear about his death and asked for privacy “while we process this shocking news and its impact on the tragic events surrounding the last several years.”
The case dismissal filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Vermont said that the U.S. Marshal informed the state that Carman died "on or about" June 15.
“Mr. Carman was in the custody of the U.S. Marshal, as is the case for all pretrial defendants who are detained. The U.S. Marshal confirmed Mr. Carman’s death this morning. We have no further comment beyond our public filing,” said Fabienne Boisvert-DeFazio, public affairs officer for the Vermont U.S. attorney’s office.
The U.S. Marshals Service said that Carman died in Cheshire County Jail in Keene, New Hampshire, and that local police were investigating what happened.
The cause of Carman’s death was not immediately clear. One of his lawyers, Martin Minnella, said he was told about Carman’s death Thursday by the U.S. Marshals Service.
“We had spoken to him yesterday. He was in good spirits,” Minnella said. “We were meeting with some experts today over Zoom at 12 o’çlock. We were prepared to start picking a jury on Oct. 10 and we were confident we were going to win. It’s just a tragedy, a tragedy.”
Minnella and fellow attorney David Sullivan, both from Conn., where Carman grew up, had criticized the indictment, including the allegations that Carman killed his grandfather, reiterating that Carman was never charged with that crime.
“The whole situation would have come out in court,” Minnella said Thursday. “It would have come out in court and I’m positive … that this young man would have been vindicated.”
Sullivan confirmed that they had spoken Wednesday and planned to speak again Thursday, and said it appeared Carman left a note for the lawyers, but which they hadn't seen yet.
"We believe that Mr. Carman left us a note that we look forward to receiving and try to make some sense of a tragic situation," he said.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Van de Graaf said in court in February that Chakalos’ “murder” was part of the fraud charge.
Last summer, U.S. District Court Judge Geoffrey Crawford denied Carman’s request to be released, saying he is a flight risk and potential danger due to the seriousness of the charges, lack of strong family, employment or community connections “and his involvement with firearms and the ongoing feud with his family” over his late grandfather’s inheritance.
