Candia, NH – New Hampshire State Police are renewing their appeal for information in the 1973 killings of two Merrimack teenagers whose deaths remain one of the state’s longstanding unsolved homicide cases.
According to the New Hampshire State Police Cold Case Unit, 15-year-olds Anne Psaradelis and Diane Compagna were last seen on Thursday, July 12, 1973, after spending the day at Hampton Beach. Investigators said the girls were last observed hitchhiking toward Merrimack late that afternoon.
When the teenagers failed to return home, they were reported missing. More than two months later, on Saturday, Sept. 29, 1973, their badly decomposed bodies were discovered in a wooded area off New Boston Road in Candia, a short distance from Route 101.
According to investigators, the condition of the bodies prevented medical examiners from determining an official manner of death. However, authorities said it is believed both girls were strangled.
The case remains classified as an unsolved homicide, and detectives continue to seek information that could identify those responsible.
The New Hampshire State Police Cold Case Unit is asking anyone with information—no matter how insignificant it may seem—to come forward. Tips can be submitted through the agency’s online Cold Case Tip Form or by emailing coldcaseunit@dos.nh.gov.
More than five decades after the deaths of Anne Psaradelis and Diane Compagna, investigators hope renewed public attention could generate new leads and bring long-awaited answers to their families.
