Danielle Denise Dauphinais, 35, last known address Merrimack

NASHUA — Danielle Dauphinais, whose son, Elijah “Eli” Lewis, was 5 when he disappeared about a year ago from his Merrimack home, and whose body was found in woods in a Massachusetts town last fall, has been indicted on five charges, including first- and second-degree murder, in connection with Eli’s death.

A dispatch issued Monday from the office of Attorney General John Formella confirmed that the grand jury for the April term of Hillsborough County Superior Court South handed up five indictments against Dauphinais, 35, who has been held in Valley Street jail in Manchester since her Oct. 18, 2021 arrest in The Bronx, New York.

Arrested along with Dauphinais was Joseph Stapf, 31, her companion, who was charged with one count each of witness tampering, a Class B felony, and endangering the welfare of a child, a Class A misdemeanor.

Stapf also remains incarcerated as the case proceeds. No additional charges have been filed against Stapf since his arrest, but according to his case file, it appears prosecutors are in the process of putting together one or more indictments to present to a grand jury in the near future.

Entries in the case file show that prosecutors filed a motion last week asking the court to extend the deadline for seeking indictment or indictments against Stapf.

(File photo by JEFFREY HASTINGS) A Merrimack cruiser and at least one police officer guarded the Sunset Drive, Merrimack residence around the clock last October while state and local police investigated the disappearance of 5-year-old Elijah Lewis.

Lawyers for Stapf didn’t object to the motion, and Judge Charles Temple granted it the same day.

Temple also granted prosecutors’ motion to seal most of the documents in the case. As it stands now, Stapf’s next scheduled court date is June 9, for a dispositional conference.

As for Dauphinais, the five indictments are on charges of first-degree murder and second-degree murder, special felonies, and three counts of tampering with witnesses, all Class B felonies.

The first-degree murder charge accuses Dauphinais of purposely causing the death of Elijah Lewis, while the second-degree murder charge accuses her of causing the death of Elijah Lewis “recklessly, with extreme indifference to the value of human life,” according to the indictments.

Dauphinais will be arraigned on the charges contained in the indictments in Hillsborough County Superior Court South in Nashua on a date that has yet to be determined, according to the dispatch from Formella’s office.

(Courtesy photo) A photo of Elijah "Eli" Lewis, the 5-year-old Merrimack boy was killed last year, allegedly by his mother, Danielle Dauphinais, who has been indicted on charges that include first- and second-degree murder.

The three witness tampering indictments accuse Dauphinais of trying to “induce, or otherwise cause,” three people — Tracy Lyn Dauphinais, who is believed to be her sister; Joanne Stapf, Joseph Stapf’s mother; and a man named Bruce Scherzer, also known as Bruce Rolland — to “testify or inform falsely” or to withhold testimony or information about Elijah from a child protective services worker.

The endangering the welfare of a child charges accuse her of allegedly preventing child protective services workers from locating Elijah by asking Tracy Lynn Dauphinais and Scherzer to tell the workers that Elijah was with them, when he was not.

The allegations against Stapf are similar; he’s accused of instructing his mother, Joanne Stapf, to not talk to a child protective services worker about Elijah.

It was roughly a week after Dauphinais and Stapf were arrested in New York that investigators received information pointing them to a wooded area bordering the Ames Nowell State Park in the northern Plymouth County town of Abington, Massachusetts.

Shortly after a trained cadaver dog located human remains in the woods, a representative of the Massachusetts chief Medical Examiner’s office, using dental records, confirmed the remains were those of Elijah.

Dean Shalhoup may be reached at 594-1256 or dshalhoup@nashuatelegraph.com.