MONROE — Though he has yet to be charged in his girlfriend’s high-profile disappearance, Derek Hammer found himself back in Green County Jail this week, where he faces four separate criminal complaints detailing felony charges ranging from domestic abuse to weapons charges and felony bail jumping.
And he remains the primary suspect in the disappearance of Melissa Trumpy of Monticello, who has been gone since October of last year, authorities said.
By all accounts, Hammer isn’t talking to authorities in any of the jurisdictions about Trumpy’s whereabouts and the related investigation. The 37-year-old mother was last documented leaving work on Oct. 26, 2021 and was reportedly headed to Carroll County, authorities have said.
Trumpy’s family has been outspoken about her disappearance; and suspects Hammer — among the last to have seen her alive — knows something more. Authorities in the past have acknowledged that she may no longer be alive.
“It’s very frustrating for all of us,” said Ben Affrunti, Trump’s former boyfriend and father of her two youngest children, speaking to the Monroe Times recently as the holidays came and went with no sign of the missing woman.
Affrunti and other family members have also detailed in media reports and in The Monroe Times the heavy toll the absence of their mother is having on the children.
“It’s just heartbreaking for everyone involved,” Green County District Attorney Craig Nolen said.
Hammer’s Friday appearance in Green County Circuit Court came after waiving extradition from both Carroll and Stephenson Counties, said Nolen. Hammer was last in Stephenson County on drug-related charges.
Dressed in orange jail clothing, he conferred with his attorney often during the court proceedings on Friday, and at one point, rolled his shoulders and stretched his neck as if to relax.
On the counts detailed in the criminal complaints bond remains at a total $83,000 on all the charges, according to Nolen. At one point amid the pending charges, Nolen said, Hammer posted $10,000 bond, which is the basis for the felony bail jumping charge.
A change.org petition online has over 800 signatures in support of keeping Hammer in jail with no bond.
Nolen alluded to the high-profile nature of the case, when he asked the judge to empanel an initial batch of 45 potential jurors “given the significant pretrial publicity.”
Hammer is scheduled for a number of pretrial court appearances, including an arraignment on April 6. Hammer, 35, is innocent until proven guilty and has invoked his right to a speedy trial, Nolen said.
“Mr. Hammer demanded a speedy trial in his cases, but he cannot demand a speedy trial on the felony matters until the formal charging document, known as an Information, is filed on the felony matters,” said Nolen.
Hammer’s next court appearance is an arraignment scheduled for 10:30 a.m., before Circuit Judge Faun Marie Phillipson, according to court records.
Investigators in two states have participated in the search for Trumpy, and reportedly have sought help from federal law enforcement agencies. They also searched a number of properties, prompting Sheriff Jeff Skatrud to say that the case “remains a missing person” file and under active investigation.
Those with information about the case or tips on Trumpy’s whereabouts are still urged to contact authorities in Green County at 608-328-9401.