Man extradited to West Virginia, charged with murder in 2016 Dolly Sods killing of Ivan "Vanya" Perlis

Nearly 10 years after a hunter found human remains in the Dolly Sods Wilderness, a man has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of 25-year-old Ivan "Vanya" Perlis.

Richard William Nichols, 65, was arrested in Indiana and extradited to West Virginia, according to the Grant County Press, WV MetroNews, WDTV and The Independent. He is being held at Potomac Highlands Regional Jail with no bond set. A criminal complaint filed by West Virginia State Police on May 7 led to the warrant for his arrest.

The charge is an accusation. Nichols has not been convicted and is presumed innocent.

Remains found off Brushy Ridge Road

On Nov. 12, 2016, a hunter found human remains along Brushy Ridge Road in a remote part of Dolly Sods, near Maysville in Grant County. Troopers from the State Police Moorefield-Petersburg detachment responded, and the remains were later identified as Perlis. The state Chief Medical Examiner's Office ruled his death a homicide.

According to the criminal complaint, Perlis' skull had three gunshot wounds to the back of the head, and ballistic testing linked skull fragments to three .22-caliber bullets. A medical examiner determined Perlis had been killed about a month before his remains were found, The Independent reported.

Neighbors on a Tucker County property

Before Perlis disappeared, he and Nichols were both staying on a property in the Dry Fork area of Tucker County. Perlis lived in a garage, and Nichols lived in a camper, according to the complaint.

Investigators said the two had argued in 2016. Nichols accused Perlis of taking a bandana and using his camper, and the dispute turned into a fight in which Nichols picked Perlis up by the neck and shook him, police said. Nichols told investigators in 2017 that the two had patched things up afterward.

Nichols' account of when he last saw Perlis changed several times, investigators said. He first said he took Perlis to meet another man, and later said that man threatened both of them with a gun and told Nichols to leave. In a May 2017 polygraph examination, results indicated deception when Nichols was asked whether Perlis left with another man in Dolly Sods and whether Perlis was alive the last time Nichols saw him, according to the complaint.

Nichols also wrote a letter of apology to Perlis' family and friends, saying he had given Perlis a ride, that Perlis never came back, and that he wished he had done more to help, The Independent reported.

A witness comes forward

The case moved forward after investigators re-interviewed the owner of the Dry Fork property in July 2024. The witness told police they saw Nichols and Perlis leave together in Nichols' truck, heading toward Dolly Sods, and that Nichols came back alone several hours later wearing different clothes.

According to the complaint, the witness said Nichols told them he had changed because there was blood on his clothing, that he had put three bullets in Perlis' head, that he needed to burn his bloodstained clothes, and that Perlis "would not be coming back."

Police also noted a possible motive tied to a separate burglary in which Perlis was reportedly pictured at the scene. Investigators speculated that Nichols may have wanted to keep Perlis from identifying others involved, The Independent reported.