Neal Cassada, 55, died at home Sunday morning, his lawyer, David Phillips, told The Charlotte Observer. Cassada had breathing and heart problems and collapsed, The Associated Press reported.
His murder and criminal conspiracy trial was to begin today in the death of Irina Yarmolenko, whose body was found in Gaston County in May 2008 near the banks of the Catawba River.
Though Phillips said he believes the death was due to natural causes, police will investigate the possibility of suicide or foul play, Gaston County District Attorney Locke Bell told the newspaper.
The body of Yarmolenko, a 20-year-old student at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte, was found next to her car with a cord, a ribbon and a drawstring tied around her neck, the Observer said.
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Cassada and his cousin Mark Carver were charged in December 2008. The suspects' DNA was found in Yarmolenko's car, WSOC-TV reported, but none of their DNA was found on the items around her neck.The State Bureau of Investigation performed a polygraph on Cassada in which he denied knowing the victim or anything about the crime, WSOC reported. The agent testified he believed that Cassada was telling the truth.
"We were looking forward to clearing his name and getting closure for the Cassada family," Phillips told the Observer. "He is 100 percent not guilty."
A trial date for Carver has not been set.