A former youth pastor and current school counselor from Las Vegas has been arrested in connection with the death of his wife, who fell to her death while hiking at Zion National Park nearly two decades ago.
David Vander Meer was taken into custody Monday in Las Vegas by U.S. Marshals, according to a statement released by the Washington County Attorney’s Office in Utah, The Salt Lake Tribune reported. He faces allegations of murder and insurance fraud stemming from the Aug. 22, 2006, death of his wife, Bernadette Vander Meer.
The criminal investigation into the 2006 incident was recently reopened after law enforcement officials received an undisclosed tip, the prosecutor’s office stated.
Details regarding what prompted the arrest warrant remain unavailable, as the accompanying affidavit is currently under seal, Washington County Deputy Attorney Phillip Soelberg told the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
At the time of the incident, park officials reported that Bernadette Vander Meer, 29, died after falling approximately 1,200 feet from the Angels Landing trail during a hike with her husband.
Following the arrest, an online staff directory for Somerset Academy Lone Mountain, a public charter school where David Vander Meer was employed as a counselor, removed his profile.
Bernadette Vander Meer had worked at the New York-New York Hotel & Casino on the Las Vegas Strip. An obituary published in August 2006 by the Review-Journal described her as a devoted wife and daughter who had a passion for stage performance, music and nature.
The trail she fell from, Angel’s Landing, is known for being one of the most dangerous routes in the U.S. According to Deseret Morning News archives, fatalities at the site have included the 2004 death of a 14-year-old on a Boy Scout outing, the 1997 death of a 36-year-old man who was rappelling down the rock formation and the 1989 death of a 28-year-old man who fell 150 feet.
In 1997, the outlet reported, 36-year-old Patricia Bottarini of Medford, New Jersey, fell about 500 feet as she was hiking to the park’s Observation Point with her husband, James Bottarini. In 2002, he went on trial in federal court on charges related to Patricia Bottarini’s death, of which he was acquitted.
Jail records indicate that David Vander Meer is being held at the Clark County Detention Center as a fugitive from another state. He is scheduled to appear in the Las Vegas Justice Court Thursday morning.
The Independent has contacted Somerset Academy Lone Mountain officials for comment.
