Texas man charged with murder in death of Lewisburg man who went missing in 2007
Nov. 10—A Texas man has been arrested and charged with first-degree murder and first-degree robbery in the missing persons case of a Lewisburg man who was last seen in 2007.
Charles Michael "Cason" Kessinger was taken into custody at his home in San Antonio, Texas, by officers with the Texas Rangers and the Texas Department of Public Safety.
In a Thursday press release, Captain R.A. Maddy of the West Virginia State Police reported that the skeletal remains recovered by law enforcement officials near Muddy Creek in Greenbrier County last year were those of James Johansen, who was 53 at the time of his disappearance.
Johansen, according to Maddy, had not been contacted by friends or neighbors for a period of time before his disappearance in June 2007.
After an investigation by numerous West Virginia state troopers over the subsequent 14 years, a break in the case emerged when the Greenbrier County Sheriff's Office received a call in September 2021 regarding the skeletal remains.
The sheriff's office completed a crime scene report, including the collection of other unspecified evidence. After investigating new and old leads, troopers presented Greenbrier County Prosecutor Pat Via with their investigative report.
In October, Via presented the case to a Greenbrier County grand jury, which returned indictments against Kessinger, who was arraigned Thursday in Greenbrier County Circuit Court and is being held in Southern Regional jail.
