Nathan Carman Denies Any Involvement with Grandfather’s Death, Blasts Media

MIDDLETOWN, CT — Middletown native Nathan Carman, 22, denied any involvement with his grandfather’s 2013 death and criticized the media, particularly the Hartford Courant, for reporting that he was a suspect in the unsolved murder as he deals with the loss of his mother after surviving for a week lost at sea.

The Courant reported that Windsor police submitted a murder arrest warrant for Carman to a prosecutor in July 2014, but the warrant was returned unsigned. John Chakalos, 87, was found dead in his home with a gunshot wound to the head and torso in December 2013. Carman is the last known person to see Chakalos alive.

Prosecutors wanted more information and Carman wasn't charged. The case remains open. Chakalos' estate was worth about $40 million.

Related: Authorities Execute Search Warrant at Rescued Man’s Vermont Home

Carman was found alive on a life raft on Sunday after being lost at sea for a week when his 31-foot aluminum center console boat sank while on a fishing trip with his mother from Port Judith, R.I. He was picked up by a freighter on Sunday and touched ground in Boston on Tuesday where he was reunited with his family.

His mother, 54-year-old Linda Carman, of Middletown, still hasn’t been found and is presumed dead, according to officials. The Coast Guard won't resume the search for her.

Nathan Carman, who currently lives in Vermont, spoke with the media on Wednesday and said that his grandfather loved him “very dearly" and he was like a son to John Chakalos and “he was like a father to me," according to the Courant.

Nathan’s father, Clark Carman, who currently lives in California but was in Middletown on Wednesday, told NBC Connecticut that Nathan was not involved with his grandfather’s death or with his mother’s disappearance.

“It was a pure accident,” Clark Carman said. “He would never do anything like that. He’s a good kid. He loved his grandfather.”

Clark Carman also told NBC that Chakalos and Linda Carman were the two most important people in Nathan’s life.

Read more at the Hartford Courant here and NBC Connecticut here.