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Norman Edward Nickle, 53, of Pottsville charged after dead teens found in basement.

POTTSVILLE — Two teenagers who had been missing for several weeks were found fatally shot in the basement of a neighbor, who was charged with their deaths.
Joshua Brian Yevak, 19, of Pottsville, and girlfriend Cayla Cierra Turner, 17, of Port Carbon, had been dead for at least a week, Schuylkill County Coroner Joseph Lipsett said Friday. The bodies were found stacked and covered with a blanket, police said.
Police charged Norman Edward Nickle, 53, with two counts of criminal homicide after the bodies were discovered late Thursday. Yevak lived less than three blocks from Nickle.
Police believe the deaths could have occurred as early as March 3, when Turner went missing.
According to court documents cited Friday by the Republican & Herald of Pottsville, Nickle told police he covered the bodies so he did not have to look at them when he was doing laundry.
Yevak had gunshot wounds to the arm and chest, possibly caused by a single bullet, Lipsett said. Turner was shot twice, once in the leg and once in the head, the coroner said.
Autopsies are scheduled today for Turner and Monday for Yevak.
Yevak’s sister, Melissa Bitler, told the newspaper that her brother had known the suspect for years and would have trusted him.
Many local government offices were closed Friday for the holiday weekend, and it was not immediately clear if Nickle had an attorney.
Nickle has several previous arrests in Schuylkill County on charges including drunken driving, driving on a suspended license and criminal trespass, according to court records.