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Man charged with murder after body believed to be missing North Carolina man found in Pittsylvania County

Andy Banks last seen on Saturday

CHATHAM, Va. – Authorities charged a man with murder in connection with a homicide investigation after they found a body in Pittsylvania County on Thursday.

The Raleigh Police Department believes the body is William Anderson “Andy” Banks, who has been missing out of North Carolina since Saturday.

34-year-old Justin Merritt is now facing a murder charge. Authorities arrested him Monday in Danville and originally charged him with robbery with a dangerous weapon, larceny of a motor vehicle and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

Picture of Andy Banks overlaid at the scene where what's believed to be his body was found in Pittsylvania County. (WSLS 10)

Banks was meeting someone at a shopping center in Raleigh to sell his Range Rover, which was later found abandoned in Danville.

Police had help from the Pittsylvania County Sheriff’s Office and said the body will be sent to the coroner in Roanoke for an autopsy and positive identification.

On Wednesday, Raleigh police announced that they were investigating Banks' disappearance as a homicide.

Merritt was in court Wednesday and his bond was set at $2 million.