Rochester murder: Woman allegedly stalked ex-girlfriend at home before fatal shooting
ROCHESTER — Haydee Rivera-Nadeau, the Somersworth woman charged in the shooting death of a Rochester woman in May, has been indicted by a Strafford County grand jury for two special felony charges of second-degree murder, and another Class B felony charge of falsifying physical evidence.
Rivera-Nadeau, 65, allegedly shot and killed Lisa Stanley Rocheleau, 54, her former girlfriend, on May 1 at Rocheleau's place of business, Action Title Services, located in the Professional Arts Building at 40 Winter St. in Rochester.
Rivera-Nadeau could face up to life in prison if convicted of the special felonies, according to Micheal Garrity, spokesperson for the New Hampshire attorney general's office.
Court documents filed by prosecutors reveal details of the killing, including an alleged incident at Rocheleau's home prior to the shooting at the office.
Stalking incident alleged more than a week before shooting
Prosecutors allege Rivera-Nadeau followed Rocheleau to her home on April 20, where she photographed, confronted and threatened her over a new relationship Rocheleau began after she and Rivera-Nadeau had broken up, according to court documents. Rivera-Nadeau is charged with stalking in connection with this incident.
Rivera-Nadeau allegedly followed Rocheleau to her office on May 1, where there was another confrontation. Rivera-Nadeau allegedly pointed a gun at Rocheleau's face and shot her.
A security guard at the Winter Street offices told police he observed a woman matching the description of Rivera-Nadeau enter the building, carrying a bag, which was later determined to have held a plant, according to prosecutors. The guard asked if he could help her, but she replied she knew where she was going.
Rocheleau's body was discovered by a relative after he and others could not get in touch with her and he went to the office to look for her.
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Court documents state Rivera-Nadeau had told a different version of the fatal incident to an employee of her pest management company, who was interviewed by investigators. According to the employee, Rivera-Nadeau claimed she had gone to Rocheleau’s office to deliver a plant and had a gun with her. She explained the gun had clicked at one point and Rocheleau had moved toward her. Then the gun fired accidentally, striking Rocheleau in the head. She admitted that she got scared and fled because she didn’t think the police would believe it was an accident.
Rochester police responded to the shooting. At the time, Rocheleau was alive and was transported to Portsmouth Regional Hospital's trauma unit, where she died 10 days later on May 11.
On May 12, an autopsy by state Deputy Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Mitchell Weinberg determined Rocheleau's cause of death was a gunshot wound and her manner of death was homicide, authorities said.
After the shooting, Rivera-Nadeau, who is in custody at Strafford County House of Corrections in Dover, fled to the area of Charlotte, North Carolina. She was arrested May 3 and extradited to New Hampshire. The initial attempted murder charge was upgraded to second-degree murder after Rocheleau died, following more than a week in intensive care at Portsmouth Regional Hospital.
One second-degree murder charge alleges Rivera-Nadeau caused Rocheleau's death by shooting her with a gun. The second murder charge alleges she caused Rocheleau's death in a manner that exhibited extreme indifference to the value of human life.
The Class B charge of falsifying evidence alleges that Rivera-Nadeau, knowing that an investigation was imminent, made an effort to hide/conceal the gun used in the crime. That crime is punishable by up to seven years in prison.
Nadeau-Rivera is also charged with a misdemeanor stalking charge for the April 20 incident That could carry a one-year prison term.
Public defender Eliana Forciniti is listed as the attorney in Rivera-Nadeau's defense. She did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Rivera-Nadeau is scheduled to be arraigned at 11 a.m. Sept. 6 at Strafford County Superior Court in Dover.
If you need help
Seacoast Media Group provides the following information as a public service while making no judgment about the guilt or innocence of the suspect in the crime described above:
Haven is a violence prevention and support service for men, women and children affected by domestic and sexual violence. Haven’s 24-hour hotline is 1-603-994-SAFE (7233) or visit havennh.org.
This article originally appeared on Fosters Daily Democrat: Haydee Rivera Nadeau indicted in murder of ex-girlfriend
