ORANGE, Mass. (AP) - A Massachusetts man has pleaded not guilty to murder in the death of a woman whose body was found near a wastewater treatment plant.
The Telegram & Gazette reports that Keith Hamel pleaded not guilty Tuesday in the death of 26-year-old Kelsey Clifford, whose body was found in Athol on Nov. 11.
Police say the Leominster woman was beaten and stabbed in the face multiple times.
Authorities say the 23-year-old Hamel was the last person to see Clifford alive. Police say surveillance video shows Hamel getting in and out of the passenger side of Clifford’s car at an Athol store.
Hamel’s attorney, John Morris, says Hamel knew Clifford through a mutual friend. He says the arrest was based on “a minimal police report with minimal facts.”
Hamel was held without bail.
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