Man indicted in connection with deaths of men found near Salem Walmart
Jay Blodget, a homeless man who lived in a wooded area behind the store, was indicted on two counts of murder. The indictment is a procedural step moving Blodget's case from Salem District Court to Essex Superior Court.
A superior court arraignment has not been set for Blodget.
Few details have been revealed about the killings, but prosecutors have said the two men were found hidden under dirt and other 'materials.' Both had been stabbed and died of blunt force trauma, a prosecutor said during Blodget's arraignment in district court.
The men killed have since been identified as Andrew Ross Guempel, 41, of Arizona, and Jonathan Thompson, 42, of Oregon. One of the men was found by a man walking his dog on April 23. Responding officers found the other man's body the same day.
Prosecutors say Blodget 'made statements implicating himself in the two murders' after he was taken into police custody.
Michael Phelan, an attorney representing Blodget, said he was 'cordial' and 'polite' in initial conversations. Blodget 'asked intelligent questions,' Phelan said, adding he planned to 'definitely explore whether there's [a] mental health issue.'
About a week before Guempel and Thomspon were found, Blodget was arrested on a breaking and entering charge, after police say he used a hacksaw to enter a storage container near the Walmart.
The woman who owned the container called Salem Police around 7:30 p.m. on April 17. She told police she was at the container to get some items, but heard a noise inside.
Blodget then walked out of the container and offered money to the woman and her husband, but they refused and called police, according to court filings.
Though he had a hacksaw and was therefore considered 'dangerous,' Blodget had no other weapons on him and apologized to the officers as he was put into handcuffs at the scene.
'Blodget stated that he got kicked out of the woods near Walmart and had no place to go,' the documents read.
He had found the storage container while looking for somewhere to sleep, bought a hacksaw and cut off the locks, then brought a mattress in and started 'tossing things out' to make space, the documents read. Some jewelry was also missing from the container, which Blodget denied taking and said he had thrown it outside.
During Blodget's arrest, police seized a green bicycle and all of the panhandling money Blodget earned, which totaled over $6,700, documents showed.
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