A Mecklenburg grand jury on Monday indicted Michael Neal Harvey for murder in connection with the September death of the Concord police chief's daughter.
Harvey, 34, is accused of killing Valerie Hamilton. He was also indicted on a charge of larceny of a motor vehicle -- a 1996 Chevrolet Blazer. The vehicle did not belong to Hamilton.
Hamilton, 23, was seen leaving the Thomas Street Tavern with Harvey on Sept. 15, shortly before she was reported missing, police said. She is the daughter of Concord Police Chief Merl Hamilton.
Harvey, a convicted sex offender who was on probation, has said he is innocent and claims that Hamilton overdosed in her sleep.
Medical examiners found no signs of physical trauma in Hamilton's death, but police say Harvey failed to get Hamilton the medical help she needed.
They also said in a statement that Harvey tried to conceal Hamilton's death and "made great efforts to clean up any potential crime scenes before he disposed of her body."
Hamilton was found dead in a storage unit Sept. 18.
Police then alerted the public to be on the lookout for Harvey, who was believed to be driving a 1996 white Chevrolet Blazer.
Harvey was arrested in Niagara Falls, N.Y., on Sept. 20. He waived an extradition hearing and agreed to return to Charlotte. He's now in the Mecklenburg County jail, held without bond on the murder charge.
Authorities said they had interviewed "many witnesses" who saw Hamilton with Harvey, and found "evidence of drug usage" during their search for Hamilton.
Police have refused to say whether the drug use might have involved Hamilton, Harvey or both. The drug evidence was found in at least one of several places police searched for Hamilton, but police wouldn't say where it was discovered or what kind of drugs were involved.
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