Killer's eerie clues 21 years after hiker's strange death as family make demand
The family of a woman murdered 22 years ago on a hiking trip have called on the police to continue their investigation - with some strange clues as yet unexplained
Louisa Chaput was found on Thanksgiving Day 2001 with multiple stab wounds near the Glen Ellis Falls parking lot in Pinkham Notch. The 52-year-old had at the time been visiting the Granite State for a hiking trip in the area.
The hiker was last seen at the Joe Dodge Lodge at the Appalachian Mountain Club visitor centre, a week before her body was discovered. It is reported that Chaput asked a worker at the centre for the directions on the short Lost Pond Trail which starts near the lodge - and should have seen her return from her walk in the White Mountains of New Hampshire by sunset.
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But Chaput didn’t return the following Monday - so her family reported her missing. Only days later the police found her body near the Glen Boulder Trail with multiple stab wounds - and found her car parked at the Direttissima Trailhead, just across the street from the Lost Pond Trailhead.
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She was a keen hiker, particularly in the White Mountains of New Hampshire (WMUR)Police believe someone stole the keys to her car and two large backpacks Chaput had brought - but they did not take the vehicle. Chaput’s hiking shoes, water and chocolate all also remained in the vehicle, and police have not revealed why they believe this might be the case.
But justice has not been done and the killer has never been found - and Chaput’s family refuses to give up. "Obviously we understand that there are other cases and it's been 20 years, but still, you know, new eyes, new eyes on the case, maybe a new detective can see something that people didn't didn't pass by or didn't go through," daughter Constance Chaput-Raby said to WMUR.
Police found Chaput's body a week after she went on a hike (WMUR)
"Things can change,” she added. “There is probably someone knowing something in the area and as we know, almost every murderer talks about it to someone. It's such a horrible secret to carry."
At the time, police determined Chaput’s death to be a homicide and claimed the evidence suggested it was a random incident - and not an attack by someone she knew. “It's not in our country, we're not far but it's not our country. It's not our law. It's not our languages," said Corenne, Chaput’s eldest daughter.
Associate attorney general Jeffrey Strelzin told WMUR that Chaput’s death is a cold case, meaning investigators have lots of information “that’s only known to them”. Strelzin explained: "We want to be able to verify the truthfulness of any information that comes to us later on.
She initially vanished when on a walk in the White Mountains (WMUR)“And so, if we know something that no one else knows and then a piece of information is given to us later on, it’s essentially almost like a lie detector test. We can tell if that person is being truthful or not." A suspect is yet to be named in the case.
Her family paid tribute to Chaput and her love of hiking. “She thought it was beautiful,” Constance said of her mother’s love for the mount Washington Valley in the White Mountains. “She liked it. She liked to hike and maybe it was a little exotic as it was another country, another language."
And they won’t give up until they get answers. "I think in English, the term 'closure,' which we don't have in French, is very appropriate,” said Marie Pineault, Chaput’s friend. “It's, you know, you never get your friend back, but at least you know what happened.” Anyone with information should contact New Hampshire State Police at 800-525-5555 or submit a tip to the New Hampshire Cold Case Unit.
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