LEWISTON, Idaho — The latest search of the Snake River for the body of a Washington state woman whose former husband is charged with killing her has come up empty.
The search that ended Saturday included the U.S. Coast Guard and officials from Washington state and Idaho.
“No searches are scheduled at this point, but as resources become available, we will utilize them until she is found,” Asotin County Detective Jackie Nichols in Washington state told the Lewiston Tribune.
Rachael Anderson, a 40-year-old mother of four from Clarkston, Washington, was in the process of getting a divorce when she disappeared April 16, 2010.
Authorities said Charles A. Capone, 52, lured her to a Moscow auto repair shop he owned, where he drugged and killed her. Capone has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder. His trial is scheduled to start Monday with jury selection.
Capone’s attorney contends there’s no evidence of Anderson’s death in Idaho, leaving authorities with speculation and conjecture.
Earlier this month, 2nd District Judge Michael J. Griffin denied a request by northern Idaho prosecutors to present evidence from an experiment intended to show their theory that Anderson’s body was dumped in a river by her estranged husband four years ago. Griffin ruled there’s no evidence the river depth or contours are the same as four years ago.
“With every search, we learn more about the current and river conditions,” Nichols said. “Based on our research, we believe her body is likely downstream from the bridge, which makes the search area vast.”
Law enforcement agencies have been searching the river near Red Wolf Crossing Bridge off and on since November.
The case appeared to languish for about three years until May 2013, when Capone and David C. Stone of Moscow were charged with first-degree murder, failure to notify a coroner or law enforcement officer about a death, and conspiracy to commit both of those crimes.
In December, Stone, 50, pleaded guilty to failure to notify law enforcement about a death. Latah County Prosecutor William Thompson Jr. has said detectives interviewed Stone and believe he is not responsible for Anderson’s death but helped cover it up.
The searches of the Snake River are based on interviews with Stone, authorities said.
The plea on the lesser charge is part of a deal that calls for Stone to testify at Capone’s trial. If a judge accepts the deal, Stone will be sentenced to seven years in jail and the murder charge against him will be dropped.
Capone and Stone are being held in the Latah County Jail.
