Dustan Joseph Preeper, 24, originally from Noel and who now lives in Halifax, and Joshua Michael Preeper, 20, of Kennetcook, appeared in provincial court in Truro Friday morning on charges of first-degree murder of Melissa Peacock, a 20-year-old Dartmouth woman who was reported missing last November.
The older Preeper man is also charged with second-degree murder in the 2010 death of Ben Hare, a 26-year-old Truro man who died as the result of an altercation.
The charges were adjourned at the request of the defence lawyers, who are waiting on additional disclosure in the Peacock case.
They are scheduled to appear Oct. 9 at 9:30 a.m.
On July 8, 2010, Truro Police Service responded to a report of an altercation at a multi-unit apartment building at 67 Lyman St. Upon their arrival, police found Hare dead outside.
Dustan Preeper was originally charged with second-degree murder shortly after the incident; however, charges were dropped that September.
He was arrested early in July, which is also when Peacock’s remains were found on a rural property in Upper Stewiacke.
Also charged in Hare’s murder is Barbara Elizabeth Marshall, Dustan Preeper’s girlfriend. She is also facing a second-degree murder charge and was granted bail late last month. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for June for Marshall.
Peacock was last seen leaving her residence Nov. 7, and cellphone records show she was in a vehicle heading north on Highway 354 after midnight on Nov. 8. Her last location was Gore, Hants County.
In February, officers searched a residence on Douglas Road in Centre Rawdon as part of the investigation.
