Nashua 1988 Murder Cold Case: Guilty Plea Expected

NASHUA, NH — A former Nashua man is expected to plead guilty to murdering a Nashua lesbian couple in 1988. David Caplin, 55, and another man harassed neighbors Charlene Ranstrom and Brenda Warner for being gay then tortured and killed them, prosecutors said. Ranstrom was 48 years old; Warner was 32.

Caplin this week indicated he will plead guilty to several charges, according to the Associated Press. His accomplice, Anthony Barnaby, 49, is in custody and set to face a fourth trial. A hung jury was declared in each of Barnaby's three murder trials in the 1980s and 1990s. He will be the first person in New Hampshire history to be tried four times for the same crimes.

At the time of murders, Caplin and Barnaby — originally from Canada — were in Nashua working construction and they lived in an apartment next to Ranstrom and Warner, prosecutors said.

The case went cold for more than a decade but in 2010 and police gathered new DNA evidence, warranting the latest murder charges against Caplin and Barnaby.

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• 2 Canadians to Face Murder Charges Again in 1988 Killing of Lesbian Couple in Nashua

Lead Photo: A mugshot for David Caplin, charged with murdering a Nashua lesbian couple in 1988. (Credit: Nashua Police Department)