Biloxi man buried his father’s body in a MS marsh after a ‘horrific and selfish’ killing

A Biloxi man pleaded guilty Monday to killing his father, who went missing two years ago but days later was found dead in a shallow grave in a Bay St. Louis marsh.

Noble V. Marske, 43, will spend at least 20 years in prison and five on post-release supervision after he pleaded guilty to one count of second-degree murder and one count of tampering with physical evidence. Harrison County Circuit Judge Lawrence P. Bourgeois Jr. lowered the charge from first-degree to second-degree murder but called Marske’s actions “despicable” and said if he could, he would sentence him for longer.

“You killed him,” Bourgeois said of Marske’s father, Van L. Marske. “You did more than that. You killed an entire family.”

Marske stood in shackles with his head down in the courtroom as Bourgeois made his ruling. He grew emotional throughout his plea, and at times, struggled to speak.

Marsha Schmitt, Van Marske’s sister, and her daughter appeared in court to watch the plea. In a statement to the court, Schmitt said her nephew does not deserve to be called “Noble” because what he did was far from it.

“You have severed that bond in the most horrific and selfish way,” she said. “You destroyed a family.”

Marske was arrested in September 2021 after his 66-year-old father went missing for nearly a week. Assistant District Attorney George Huffman said in court that after Van Marske went missing, authorities were called to a home in Biloxi in response to an argument outside. There, they found a man employed by Van Marske arguing with Noble Marske about his father’s disappearance.

They searched the home and found Van Marske’s wallet, phone and dentures, Huffman said.

Noble Marske said in court on Monday he killed his father when an argument between them turned violent. Noble Marske had a history of domestic abuse toward his father, according to Schmitt and Marske himself.

An autopsy showed Van Marske died from blunt force trauma.

Authorities questioned Noble Marske when they were called to the home. He denied any involvement in his father’s disappearance but outlined an area where he said his father had gone fishing in Bay St. Louis, Huffman said. Authorities searched that area — which is in marshland near Mississippi 603 — and found a path that led to a shallow grave where they found Van Marske’s body.

Authorities also searched the shed at the Biloxi home where Noble Marske said the argument occurred and found zip ties covered in blood, Huffman said. Investigators concluded that after Noble Marske killed his father, he drove his body to Bay St. Louis and buried him in the marsh.

Van Marske was a longtime Biloxi resident, a self-employed carpenter, custom cabinet maker and woodworker, his obituary said. He was also a U.S. Coast Guard boat captain, a fisherman and enjoyed motorcycle racing.

Schmitt said she hopes people will remember her brother for who he was, not how he died.

“He was always helping people,” she said. And “he was happy. He was doing what he loved.”

Bourgeois ordered Marske to pay $3,500 in fees to compensate for the cost of his father’s burial. Marske’s attorney, Angela Broun, said there is no excuse or reason for Marske’s actions and that he has suffered from serious drug addiction for much of his life.

Bourgeois said drug use was not an excuse.

“He has an incredible amount of remorse,” Broun said.

Near the end of his plea, Marske teared up again. His family dried their eyes with tissues.

Before he dismissed him into custody, Bourgeois condemned Marske for the last time.

“You will forever be entombed in a prison of your own mind,” he said.