RobberySuspectCaughtAfterChase

CHESTER – The case against two local men in the drug-related kidnapping and murder of 24-year-old Jason Argersinger has moved to trail in New York State.

As part of the on-going investigation into the March 2005 kidnapping and murder of 24-year-old Jason Argersinger, formerly of Maple Avenue, a federal grand jury indictment was found and presented on Dec. 13 against Noah Gladding, 25, of 19 Hoop Pole Hill Road, and Eric J. Connelly, 22, of 82 Wig Hill Road. They will be tried in the U.S. Court for the Western District of New York in Rochester.

According to a press release issued by Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Western District Everardo Rodriguez, the grand jury has charged Gladding and Connelly with kidnapping, conspiring to distribute marijuana, and weapons possessions counts. Gladding was also charged with using a firearm to commit a crime of violence and causing death.

The Argersinger murder resulted in the break-up of an alleged marijuana-trafficking ring prosecutors say was operated between Chester, Connecticut and New York state since 2001, and that more than 1,000 kilograms – or more than 2,200 pounds – of marijuana was distributed during that time period.

Earlier in the investigation, Gladding was arrested and charged with first-degree kidnapping, first-degree murder, and second-degree murder. Connelly was charged with aiding in the commission of a kidnapping.

The Western District of New York grand jury has also charged Josiah Wilcox Howenstine, 26, of Killingworth, with taking part in the kidnapping and is accused of supplying the 9mm semiautomatic handgun-with a defaced serial number-Gladding used to kill Argersinger. Court records state that Howenstine told police he gave Gladding the gun so Gladding could use it for protection against drug dealers.

In documents released March 2005 by Middletown Superior Court, Gladding told police he abducted Argersinger from Connelly's home, with Connelly's help, on March 1, 2005. Argersinger was knocked unconscious by a blow to the head.?? His two friends stuffed his body in the trunk of his car and bound him with duct tape; then Gladding got into Argersinger's car and started driving north.

It is alleged by authorities that Gladding drove the car to upstate New York because he intended to deliver an unwilling Argersinger to settle a $400,000 drug debt Gladding claimed that Argersinger owed marijuana suppliers on a New York Indian reservation, in addition to a large debt owed to two other men involved in the alleged drug ring -- an Anthony Marinaccio and a Mitchell LaFrance (both of New York). Authorities said Gladding claimed he "had received death threats against his family and himself" because of the debts.

According to the information Gladding provided to police detectives, somewhere in upstate New York-near Stafford in Genesee County-Gladding stopped the car and opened the trunk. Argersinger was conscious and had managed to free himself. He climbed out of the trunk, and Gladding said he shot Argersinger once in the back. He dragged him down to to the nearby Black Creek and shot him seven more times in the chest, and left the scene in Argersinger's car.

Connecticut State Police said Gladding admitted to the slaying, saying that, "he didn't disrespect [Argersinger] by shooting him in his face, but did shoot him several times in his chest area," according to a police report.

The following day, on March 1, police in Chicopee, Massachusetts found Argersinger's car engulfed in flames. Investigators believe that

Connelly and Howenstine helped set the car ablaze. A day later, Argersinger's clothes, wallet, driver's license, and cell phones were found in a dumpster near Rochester, New York, according to police. On March. 24, nearly three weeks after Argersinger had been reported missing, his body was recovered in Black Creek in the Genesee County town of Stafford, New York, 27 miles southwest of Rochester.

According to New York District Attorney Lawrence Friedman, Gladding is facing murder charges in Genesee County, New York, abduction and drug charges in Connecticut, and federal charges of abduction that resulted in a death. The federal charges include allegations that could make Gladding eligible for the death penalty, if convicted.

According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Andy Rodriguez, who is prosecuting the case, "A kidnapping resulting in the death of a victim under the federal statute is a capital-eligible offense. If the ultimate decisions is made to seek the death penalty, it's a decision that is made after careful, unbiased consideration of all the facts in the case," Rodriguez said.

One of Gladding's attorneys, William T. Easton, stated, "We hope to convince the United States Attorney's Office and the Department of Justice that the death penalty is not appropriate in this case."

While attending Valley Regional High School, Argersinger – who was well liked by peers and was a valued member of the school's soccer team – was arrested for possession of alcohol by a minor and possession of marijuana. After high school, Argersinger was arrested in May 2001 and charged with possession of 27 pounds of marijuana, for which he was found guilty and served nine months in prison. Gladding was convicted in 1997 for assault in the third-degree and served two years' probation on a one-year suspended prison sentence. Connelly has been charged in the past with motor vehicle violations.