Fish & Game Divers, Troopers Search For Clues After Hooksett Killing

HOOKSETT, NH — Investigators were back in Hooksett on Monday searching for clues after a man was stabbed to death on Sunday.

Jason Wirtz, 45, of Manchester, was stabbed in the neck and killed on Sunday morning on Main Street. Dillon Sleeper, 26, formerly of Franklin, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder.

New Hampshire Fish & Game divers were in the Merrimack River on Monday, searching for clues.

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Jeffrey Hastings of Frame of Mind Photography said divers worked in different parts of the river, but one area where they appeared to be concentrating was under the bridge just north of where Wirtz was found. Six Fish and Game vehicles and a trailer were at the scene.

The New Hampshire State Police’s Major Crime Unit, a K-9 unit, and troopers from Troop B were also in the area, searching in and around Donati Field, where Wirtz was found. The troopers were seen performing line searches of grassy and wooded areas of the park and rummaging through plants and high grass. Hastings said the troopers appeared to be searching for a weapon.

Investigators are asking for witnesses who may have observed anyone walking on Main Street in Hooksett between Daniel Webster Highway and College Park Drive during the hours of 11:30 p.m. on Saturday to 1 a.m. on Sunday. Also, witnesses are being asked if they saw anyone who drive across the Main Street Bridge in Hooksett during that same period.

Sleeper was arraigned in Merrimack County Superior Court on Monday on a single felony count of reckless second-degree murder and on a felony theft by unauthorized taking-$1,501+ charge from July 16 in Epsom. A motion was made and granted to seal the affidavit and arrest warrant in the homicide case. Sleeper was held without bail.

If you were in either area and saw anyone, contact the New Hampshire State Police Major Crime Unit tip line at 603-628-8477 or New Hampshire State Police Dispatch at 603-223-4381.

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