A man who police say had most recently been camping in the woods of South Burlington, Vermont raised no objections in a court hearing Thursday to having New Hampshire officials return him to that state — where the attorney general said he will face two murder charges.
Logan Clegg, 26, was arrested last week and held without bail on an alleged probation violation from Utah. Clegg was also initially labeled as a “person of interest” in the deaths of Wendy and Steve Reid of Concord, New Hampshire.
WATCH ANYTIME FOR FREE
 |
Stream NBC10 Boston news for free, 24/7, wherever you are. |
However, Thursday, New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella said Clegg was the suspect in the couple’s shooting deaths.
“What we’ve gathered so far has led us to believe he’s committed the crimes we charged him with,” Formella said at a news conference about the two murder charges.
Get updates on what's happening in Boston to your inbox. Sign up for our News Headlines newsletter.
The Reids were found shot to death in April on hiking trails near their home.
While officials Thursday declined to discuss a possible motive for the crime or describe the nature of the evidence in the case, documents filed with the Vermont Superior Court did provide new information about the killings.
Investigative paperwork filed with the court ahead of a hearing Thursday about a fugitive from justice charge showed Clegg had been living in the woods by the trails in Concord while working at a fast food restaurant nearby.
Police wrote in the paperwork that they figured out who Clegg was by talking to folks who’d hike in the area, then by checking surveillance video from stores where he’d buy camping gear.
However, actually finding Clegg required a break, the documents show.
Police claimed Clegg would regularly use a fake name, but they said Clegg booked a plane ticket to Germany using his own name — which put him on their radar. The court paperwork said the flight booking information contained a phone number police could use to then track Clegg to another campsite in Vermont.
Officers told the court in the document that Clegg had more than $7,000 cash and a gun in his backpack. Police said tests on the gun matched ballistics recovered from the woods where the Reids were shot.
“Six months ago, this senseless tragedy became our number one priority,” Chief Bradley Osgood of the Concord Police Department said at the Thursday news conference. "Not a single day went by where it did not remain our highest priority. And it still remains our highest priority today."
In the hearing on the fugitive from justice allegation, Vermont Superior Court Judge Mary Morrissey asked Clegg a series of questions about whether he understood the proceedings. He responded that he did, and raised no objections to being returned to New Hampshire to face charges there.
“You would like to waive extradition — go back to New Hampshire and answer to the charges?” Judge Morrissey asked Clegg.
“That’s right,” the suspect responded, from a video link to the court from the jail.
Sign up for our Breaking newsletter to get the most urgent news stories in your inbox.
Morrisey told Clegg New Hampshire authorities would be coming to pick him up soon.
At the news conference, Formella asked community members to continue sharing any information they have about Clegg, or memories from the area in Concord last April.
“It is not uncommon for witnesses to realize that they have information that may be relevant after an arrest is made,” Formella noted, urging anyone with information to call Concord police at 603-225-8600.
Formella told reporters there is still a lot of work to do in the investigation.
“Mr. Clegg’s arrest is a significant step in this case, but it’s only one step,” the attorney general emphasized.
As the investigation and court process continue, a close friend of the Reids shared memories of the couple with NECN and NBC10 Boston Thursday.
Louis Siegel of Burlington, Vermont, a former close coworker of Steve Reid’s, said he was also Reid’s tennis partner and a dear friend of Wendy’s. He described Wendy as generous with advice, from a thoughtful and caring perspective.
“They were really wonderful, wonderful people,” Siegel said of the Reids, whom he’d regularly visit with when they were in Vermont — where they used to live. “They will be remembered for their goodness, for their kindness, for their dedication to work, for their dedication to family.”
Get updates on what's happening in Boston to your inbox. Sign up for our News Headlines newsletter.
Siegel explained he worked on international development projects with Steve Reid, in places like Haiti and Senegal, helping governments better serve their people in a range of ways while also protecting natural resources.
Siegel recalled the Reids letting him and his partner move in with them when they were living in Haiti after the 2010 earthquake damaged the property where Siegel had been staying.
“Steve and Wendy’s house was left untouched, so they graciously took us in, along with my partner’s handicapped brother, and were just so hospitable and helpful,” Siegel recalled.
Siegel said he hopes the arrest of Logan Clegg can be a significant step in the long healing process for the family and other loved ones of the Reids.
“The outpouring of sympathies and grief from people all over the world and in particularly from colleagues on projects that he had worked on overseas was just incredible,” Siegel added.
The police chief also expressed his sympathies, and a hope that the arrest can help affected people move forward.
“The Concord community was shocked by the deaths of Wendy and Stephen Reid, and we hope that today may allow for a sense of healing for the community and the Reid family,” Osgood said.
Additional details on the case are expected to be released when Clegg answers to the murder charges in New Hampshire. In the meantime, the New Hampshire attorney general noted Thursday that Clegg is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
