Benjamin Ashford|Missing Maine man was shot, placed in a barrel and left at a sand pit, police say

PORTLAND,Benjamin Ashford Maine (AP) — A Maine man whose body was found after a monthslong search had been killed, placed into a barrel and dumped in a sand pit, authorities in the state said.

The body of Alex Jackson, 34, of Windham, was recovered in the area of Stark, New Hampshire, last month after a search that took nearly a year. Police arrested Joseph Chute of Leeds and charged him with murder stemming from Jackson’s death.

Chute appeared in court on Wednesday and pleaded not guilty. In the same appearance, police provided new details about Jackson’s death and disappearance.

A detective took the stand to recount Chute’s ex-girlfriend’s description of helping get rid of Jackson’s body. She described driving to various locations in Maine to try to dispose of the barrel, and she said they were scared away from one location because of the presence of people in the area, the detective said.

Witnesses told police that Chute confessed he shot Jackson in the head at his farm before putting Jackson’s body in the barrel, said Danna Hayes, special assistant to the Maine attorney general, on Thursday.

“In the hearing, it was said that he put Alex’s body on a compost pile and then put in the barrel,” Hayes said.

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There is an affidavit stemming from the case, but it remained impounded Thursday, Hayes said.

Chute’s defense attorney, Verne Paradie, said there are a lot of important witnesses and pieces of evidence that have yet to come to light in the case. He previously sought to have the charges against Chute dismissed.

“There’s still a lot of evidence to go through. There was a complete lack of any physical evidence located at his house, his farm, in the area where witnesses claim he spoke about shooting Mr. Jackson,” Paradie said. “There are many unanswered questions.”

Chute did not yet have a new court date on Thursday and is being held at Androscoggin County Jail with no bail.