Shooting deaths of couple in New Hampshire woods still a mystery 5 days later: "They can't tell us the motive"
Police still have no new information to release in the case Monday of a Concord, New Hampshire couple found shot to death on the walking trails near their apartment complex, CBS Boston reports.
Stephen Reid, 67, and Djeswende (Wendy) Reid, 66 went out for a walk on Monday, April 18 and were reported missing by their family two days later. They were found shot to death on a walking trail near the Alton Woods Apartment Complex in Concord on Thursday, April 21. Their deaths were ruled homicides.
"We have no new specific information to provide at this time," New Hampshire Senior Assistant Attorney General Geoffrey Ward told reporters after law enforcement spent the weekend combing the Broken Ground Trails.
On Monday, police in vests walked the trails while talking with residents. Investigators had no update on whether the act was random or targeted.
"We don't have any specific information that would lead us to believe that the public, in general, is in danger, but people should be vigilant," Ward said.
The lack of new information is little comfort to the people who live nearby the trails and the complex.
"It's concerning that they're saying, oh, don't be afraid. Go about your business. Yet, they can't tell us the motive behind this tragedy," a friend of the Reid family who did not want to identify herself said.
Ward continued to ask for the public's help in solving the case.
"Anyone who was hiking in the broken ground trails on Monday afternoon, in particular, on the Marsh Loop trail but on any of the trails in that area to contact the Concord police department."
Anyone with information on the case can contact Concord Police at (603) 225-8600, or tips can be submitted anonymously by contacting the Concord Regional Crimeline at (603) 226-3100. Tips can also be submitted online through the Crimeline website at www.concordregionalcrimeline.com, or text message TIP234 and your message to CRIMES (274637)
Stephen and Djeswende Reid's family also released a statement thanking law enforcement for their hard work and calling the couple "soulmates."
The children and extended family of Steve and Djeswende (Wendy) Reid wish to express our sincere gratitude to the members of the Concord Police Department, the NH State Police, the Merrimack County Sheriff's Office, the Office of the Attorney General, and NH Fish and Game for their extraordinary efforts over the last week in the investigation of the deaths of our loved ones.
Steve served four years in the Peace Corps in West Africa right after college. He met his future wife and soulmate Wendy, who was from West Africa, while she was studying in Washington D.C. on an athletic scholarship. They bonded over their mutual love of adventure and fitness.
Steve and Wendy had returned three years ago to his hometown of Concord to enjoy a well-deserved retirement. Steve's thirty-plus year career as an international development specialist in service to the world's most vulnerable through USAID humanitarian projects could not have been made possible without the love, care and support of Wendy, who also helped recently-resettled refugees acclimate and thrive in the United States.
As requested by the police, we ask for your support by providing any information that would be helpful to the ongoing investigation.