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       A 46-year-old man has been arrested and charged in the death of a Colorado woman whose remains were found this week following her disappearance nearly a decade ago.

       Joel Hollendorfer, 46, is charged with second-degree murder and tampering with physical evidence in connection with the death of 19-year-old Kara Nichols, the El Paso County Sheriff's Office said Tuesday. She was reported missing by her family on Oct. 14, 2012.

       ALASKA'S COLD CASE MURDER OF SOPHIE SERGIE: AUDIO OF MAINE SUSPECT PLAYED AT TRIAL

       Kara Nichols, 19, was last seen on Oct. 9, 2012. Her remains were found this week after investigators executed a search warrant, officials said. (El Paso County Sheriff's Office)

       She was last seen by a family member in the 6700 block of Mission Road in unincorporated El Paso County days earlier.

       A January review of the case by cold case investigators yielded a witness that provided a "significant new lead," El Paso County Sheriff Bill Elder said during a news conference to announce the arrest. Based on the lead, the sheriff's office and the FBI Evidence Response Team executed a search warrant in the 9600 block of Burgess Road and found female human remains on a property, Elder said.

       Joel Hollendorfer (El Paso County Sheriff's Office)

       The El Paso County Coroner's Office tentatively identified the remains as Nichols, authorities said.

       Elder did not disclose the details that led to Hollendorfer's arrest.

       "I want the Nichols family to know that they are in our thoughts and prayers. This has been a long and difficult road," he said.

       El Paso County Sheriff's Office headquarters. (El Paso County Sheriff's Office)

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       He said investigators spent hundreds of hours and executed dozens of search warrants during the case, which spanned across the United States and Europe. The charges against Hollendorfer will be reviewed by prosecutors in the coming.

       He is being held in the El Paso County jail.