Former Buckfield woman Naudiaerella “Naudia” Wesley, 27, was slain in Denver in November, police say. Submitted photo

A former Buckfield woman was slain recently in Denver, police confirmed Monday, but the body of 27-year-old Naudiaerella “Naudia” Wesley has not been recovered.

For friends and family of Wesley, a former standout athlete at Buckfield Senior High School, it has been a long and strange couple of months. Though police said they believe Wesley was killed just before Thanksgiving, no arrests has been made, and Denver police have provided few details about the crime.

Part of the murky nature of the crime is related to the fact that the person who reportedly killed Wesley is now believed to be dead, police said.

Doug Schepman, director of communications with the Denver Police Department, responded Monday to a Sun Journal inquiry about the alleged crime.

“Our investigation began when DPD received a tip that a 26-year-old man named Keelynn Ashworth murdered an unknown woman,” Schepman wrote. “On December 1, 2023, Denver Police investigators went to the apartment where Mr. Ashworth was living in order to execute a search warrant.

“Mr. Ashworth refused to exit the apartment and was later found deceased inside the apartment from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The investigation continued.”

Wesley had joined the U.S. Navy years before she ended up in Denver, family members said. Because she had been away from Maine for a while, her family in Buckfield did not immediately know something had happened to her.

“Because the original tip did not include any information identifying the victim,” Schepman wrote, “and because Naudia Wesley had not been reported missing, it took some skilled police and forensic work to learn Naudia’s identity and confirm that she was the victim of this crime.

“It is accurate that her remains have not been found. Investigators believe the murder occurred on November 13, 2023.”

In Buckfield, Wesley’s grandmother, Shirley Martin, said she has been trying to piece together what happened to her granddaughter, through the help of other family members and several friends of the slain woman.

Through their interviews with people familiar with Wesley and Ashworth, the family learned that police believe Wesley’s body was dumped at a landfill. A homicide detective confirmed that, the family said, but did not disclose other details of Wesley’s death.

From the start, the family has been frustrated trying to get information from police or convince the Denver-area news media to cover the story.

“Something ain’t right with this case,” Martin said last week.

Since they learned of the killing, Wesley’s friends and family have maintained chat groups on Facebook in which they sought to uncover more witnesses and to learn more about what happened in Colorado.

They are also mourning the loss of a woman they described as ambitious and independent.

“Naudia loved sports, was in soccer and basketball and track,” said Wesley’s sister, Roxann Brigette White of Portland. “Naudia loved the ocean and joined the Navy. She cared deeply about ones close to her.”

Wesley’s family members said she was born in Florida, but grew up in the Buckfield area.

The Sun Journal is replete with stories about Wesley’s prowess on the basketball court and soccer field. There is also a story from 2009 featuring Wesley and her grandmother cleaning up after a freak tornado hit the area.

Wesley’s family members said they believe somebody helped Ashworth move Wesley’s body after she was killed, although no additional charges have been filed in the case, which is described as ongoing.

“This remains an active investigation,” Schepman wrote, “as investigators continue seeking more information surrounding the events.”