CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A man who lived in the same apartment as a missing 11-year-old girl who was later found dead in the Connecticut River is in custody on charges unrelated to her killing.
Kevin Mullaney has been held at the Coos County jail since Jan. 10, a jail official said. The 23-year-old Mullaney is charged with receiving stolen property, breach of bail, possession of a firearm by a felon and forgery.
He also has drug possession charges pending in Grafton County.
Mullaney was sharing an apartment with Celina Cass and her family when Celina disappeared July 25. Her body was found a week later near a hydroelectric dam that spans the Connecticut River between Celina's hometown, Stewartstown, and Canaan, Vt., ending an intense search that at its peak involved more than 100 federal, state and local law enforcement officers.
Celina's death has been declared a homicide, but no arrests have been made.
Senior Assistant Attorney General Jane Young said Friday that the investigation into Celina's death "is as active today as when we found her."
Young wouldn't comment on Mullaney's recent arrests or any connection to the investigation into Celina's death.
Mullaney has said Celina's mother, Louisia Cass, was like a mother to him, and Celina was like a sister.
Coos County House of Correction Superintendent Craig Hamelin said Mullaney was being held in lieu of a $31,000 cash bond and is expected to be there awhile. He said Mullaney has no court appearances scheduled yet.
Mullaney is the son of a former boyfriend of Celina's mother. He was living with Celina, Louisia Cass, Louisia Cass' husband, Wendell Noyes, and Celina's 13-year-old sister, Kayla.
Celina was last seen in the apartment on a computer. Her body was found in the Connecticut River about a quarter-mile from her home near the Canadian border a week later
Since the discovery of Celina's body, Louisia Cass has separated from her husband of a year, Wendell Noyes, who has a history of psychological problems. Noyes, 48, was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and was committed to a state psychiatric hospital in 2003 after breaking into the home of an ex-girlfriend and threatening to harm her. He has been in and out of hospitals since Celina disappeared.
Friends say Louisia and her daughter are now living with Kevin Mullaney's father, Mark Mullaney. Kevin Mullaney had been living with them until recently.
Mullaney is charged with forging Louisia Cass' signature on a $250 check he cashed Oct. 4 at Towle's Mini Mart in Stewartstown.
Store owner Shannon Towle said Friday one of her clerks cashed the check. She said she was not aware of Mullaney's arrest until several of the investigators in Celina's case came in and had the check with them.
"There's a presence of them up here all the time," Towle said of the investigators. "They're questioning people a lot."
It was not immediately known whether Mullaney has a lawyer yet. A phone listing for his father couldn't be found.
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