According to Vermont’s chief medical examiner, Brooke Bennett was killed. He ruled her death a homicide, but he didn’t say how the 12-year-old girl died, reported WCAX. Also, there were no charges made regarding her death.

This discovery came while Brooke Bennett’s uncle Michael Jacques made his first federal court appearance on Monday, as he had been charged with kidnapping the girl. He was ordered to remain in federal custody. The sexual assault charges against him were dropped because federal prosecutors wanted to focus on the kidnapping.

Bill Sorrell, D-Vt. Attorney General said that the investigation was continuing.

“A lot of work done over the holiday, lot of work left to be done,” said Bill Sorrell, according to WCAX.

Prosecutor Craig Nolan said that Michael Jacques had planed to kidnap the girl by using the Internet. He was also accused of changing some of Brooke’s MySpace information so that it would look like the girl had to see someone she met online, exactly the day she disappeared. In order to fool the police, Michael Jacques left her clothes near the bridge in Brookfield.

Wanting to demonstrate that Brooke Bennett’s uncle represented a danger for the community, prosecutors mentioned Jacques’ criminal history and the evidence in the case. The judge ruled that he remained in custody during the trial.

Monday, Ray Gagnon, Brooke Bennett’s former stepfather made his appearance on court. He was also ordered to be kept in custody and he was charged with child pornography. Prosecutors in Alabama said the man had images in his home from Cullman, Alabama. Michael Jacques and Ray Gagnon have to return in federal court on July 17.