A man who had been living in a tent behind the McDonald’s in Franklin was arrested Monday on charges that he failed to report a dead body in his encampment over the summer.
Richard Glover, 56, faces a slew of charges, including abuse of a corpse, a Class A misdemeanor, and felony counts of possession of a controlled drug and failure to comply with sex offender registration.
On July 29, the Franklin Police were notified of a deceased female who had been found in a tent in a wooded area near the McDonald’s located at 822 Central St., according to an affidavit. The person who called the police described a “heavy odor” coming from the tent that was consistent with a decomposing human body.
The body was later identified as 55-year-old Melinda Bastraw, a lifelong resident of Laconia. Those living in the area told police they believed “Rico” Glover had given Bastraw, a “hot shot,” which refers to a fatal dose of fentanyl.
They said the tent belonged to Glover, who had been living in the area since June or July. On Oct. 1, Franklin officers conducted an interview with Glover at the Belknap County Jail, following his arrest by Concord police on outstanding warrants.
In the interview with police, Glover said he had known Bastraw for about four or five years and she was a very good friend, according to the affidavit. He initially told police the tent in Franklin did not belong to him, and he had nothing to do with “a body.” After the Franklin officers told Glover that they were simply investigating Bastraw’s death, he admitted that he did own the tent and lied because he was fearful of getting charged for not reporting his new address as a sex offender.
Glover told police Bastraw came to his tent one evening because she needed a place to stay. He said she brought her own fentanyl with her and she got high in the tent. Glover left her alone to “go do something” and came back around 11 a.m. the next day to find Bastraw on the floor. Glover told police she saw her yawning and moving and believed she was alive at that point.
They asked if he panicked and fled after seeing Bastraw on the floor.
“That would be safe to say but I didn’t know she was dead,” he told police, according to the affidavit.
Glover began staying at another campsite and didn’t return to the tent did not go back to the tent for two weeks in fear of getting in trouble. As a registered sex offender, any change of his address needed to be reported to the Laconia Police Department within five business days, and the last time he did so was July 2, according to court documents. He also did not notify Franklin police that he was residing in the city.
After police pushed for further details about Bastraw’s death, along with showing photos of her body, he told them that he had known she was dead three to four days after she first came to the tent. He said she stayed in the same spot, her body was stiff and she was in the fetal position facing the woods.
On her obituary page dated July 17, Bastraw was described as having “the biggest smile and infectious giggle that would light up every room she entered. She was a free spirit and never afraid to be herself.”
In June, several complaints were filed against Glover by the Northfield Police Department for possessing controlled substances without authorization, keeping a deadly weapon as a felon, failing to register as a sex offender and attempting to induce a witness to withhold information about his address, according to court documents. He had been previously convicted dating back to 2011 for drug possession. His hearing on seven charges was held on Oct. 5, and he was given a $200 cash bail.
At an Oct. 13 arraignment on theft charges out of Tilton, Glover was released on personal recognizance and ordered to not go near any Walmart in the state of New Hampshire, according to court documents.
Glover’s next arraignment date is on Oct. 19 at 10 a.m. on three outstanding charges, including abuse of a corpse.
