Nikita Casap, the 17-year boy charged in the death of his parents in the Village of Waukesha, has pleaded not guilty on the now 10 felony counts he is facing.
Casap was arraigned May 7 in Waukesha County Circuit Court, moving the homicide case forward, even while prosecutors continue to indicate that additional charges may be coming as the investigation continues. The hearing made no mention of the case’s connection an FBI investigation of a possible assassination plot by Casap aimed at President Donald Trump, however,
The two first-degree intentional homicide counts are tied to the deaths of Nikita Casap’s mother, Tatiana Casap, and stepfather, Donald Mayer, whose bodies were discovered Feb. 28 inside their Cider Hills Drive house by Waukesha County Sheriff’s Office deputies. Both had been shot, with their bodies concealed under piles of clothing or other materials in the home where Nikita Casap also lived.
New team now begins work in Casap’s defense
During the arraignment hearing, Casap did not speak, but his new attorneys did. Katie Holtz and Paul Rifelj from Wisconsin State Public Defenders office in Wauwatosa entered a plea of not guilty on his behalf.
Holtz and Rifelj, who were appointed April 22 to replace attorneys from the Waukesha County state public defenders office, told Judge Ralph M. Ramirez that it was too early in their tenure and the proceedings to file any defense motions. They’ll spend the next three months reviewing discovery materials submitted to the defense team May 7 by Waukesha County District Attorney Lesli Boese, the lead prosecutor in the case.
Boese told Ramirez that a 10th felony count, intimidation of a witness with a threat of force, was added May 7. That count involves an unidentified Waukesha West High School female classmate who said Casap threatened her if she revealed any of what Casap told her weeks before the deaths.
Following the hearing, Boese told reporters that prosecutors were able to include the latest charge at the arraignment because the allegations were included in the nine-count original complaint as well as in testimony at an April 9 preliminary hearing, when Casap was bound over for trial.
She said additional charges resulting from the investigation may emerge. “It continues to be ongoing as (investigators) continue to work through records and things like that,” Boese said. “There are so many sources of information out there that they’re still sifting through.”
Homicide case continues to evolve as evidence emerges
Earlier indications, including from the Waukesha County Sheriff’s Office, that the investigation isn’t over continue to add to the complexity in a case that has already taken several unusual turns.
For instance, the arraignment hearing in a state court did not address a potential federal case. One such case could arise from the FBI investigation, revealed in a search warrant and affidavit unsealed on April 11, that alleges the homicides were tied to Casap’s plot to steal his parents’ money to finance an assassination attempt on Trump and destabilize the U.S. government.
Boese told reporters May 7 that her office is not directly coordinating with the FBI. The state will focus on the homicides and federal government will focus on any threats involving the president or U.S. government. “I don’t know what the federal (officials) are doing with anything they’re investigating,” she said.
Details of a death investigation itself were slow in coming, with the sheriff’s department first revealing that one body was found in the Cider Hills Drive home Feb. 28, only to confirm two days later that a second body was there, as well. Even then, Casap was charged on March 3 with only with theft, though authorities had publicly stated, both in media releases and in court, that additional charges were expected.
That complaint was replaced by a new complaint filed March 27, in which Casap was charged with nine felony counts: two counts of first-degree intentional homicide, two counts of hiding a corpse, two counts of theft of movable property, two counts of identity theft and a single count of taking and driving a vehicle without the owner’s consent.
Holtz and Rifelj declined to make any statements to the media following the arraignment hearing. A status hearing was set for 8:30 a.m. Aug. 18, when a trial date could be scheduled.
Contact reporter Jim Riccioli at james.riccioli@jrn.com.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Nikita Casap arraigned on Waukesha homicide charges in deaths of his parents
Reporting by Jim Riccioli, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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