MAQUOKETA, Iowa (AP) — A Dubuque man charged in the stabbing death of a Bellevue man has pleaded not guilty. The Telegraph Herald reports that 23-year-old Drew Mangler entered a written plea last week in Jackson County District Court. Mangler is charged with first-degree murder in the death of 59-year-old James Remakel.
Police found Remakel’s body after being called to a house in Bellevue on Dec. 25, 2016. An autopsy showed Remakel had been stabbed 33 times in his upper body, neck and head. He was believed to be dead for several days before police found him.
Court documents say Mangler was developed as a suspect following witness accounts to police. Investigators say they found a shoe with Remakel’s blood on it during a search of Mangler’s house.