By NANCY WEST, InDepthNH.org

Gordon Thomas Searles, 68, one of the 11 former employees of the Sununu Youth Services Center – formerly called YDC, who was charged with aggravated felonious sexual assault has died in Manchester, according to his attorney Joseph Fricano of Nashua.

Searles was living in Manchester when he died Sunday awaiting trial on three counts of aggravated felonious sexual assault on a teenage boy who was incarcerated at YDC  between 1995 and 1998 while Searles worked there.

Fricano said he didn’t know the cause of Searles’ death, but when asked said it wasn’t a suicide.

Searles had been living in Brooksville, Fla. before being charged in New Hampshire.

He had been free on $10,000 cash bail in New Hampshire,  Fricano said.

Now there are only nine criminal defendants accused in connection with more than 1,000 accusations stemming from staffers at YDC for decades of abuse because a judge dismissed charges against Frank Davis after determining he was not competent to stand trail.

During David Meehan’s April civil trial against the state that detailed hundreds of rapes and beatings he endured while incarcerated at YDC, Meehan said he tried to tell then-staffer Tom Searles what he was being subjected to and Searles reportedly told him: “That doesn’t happen here, little fella.”

Former YDC resident Michael Gilpatrick testified at Meehan’s civil trial that he was molested by Searles around the same time period as Meehan was being raped in the facility.

The jury awarded Meehan $38 million, but the state is fighting that amount saying he should only get $475,000.

Fricano said Searles was adamant that he was innocent and was looking forward to having his day in court.

“Sadly, he passed away this past Sunday. He’s at peace now,” Fricano said. He added that he hoped for peace for everyone on both sides of the case.