A Wilton man accused of bludgeoning his grandmother to death was indicted on a murder charge in Franklin County Superior Court.

Dana Craney, 22, is charged with the murder of his 67-year-old grandmother, Joanne Goudreau.

The indictment was returned Friday and represents a grand jury finding that there is probable cause for the case to go to trial on the specified charge.

Goudreau’s body was found in December near the mobile home she and Craney had shared at 1130 Weld Road in Wilton.

According to court documents, Craney told detectives at the time that he hit Goudreau in the head with a hammer six or seven times while she slept, then brought her body behind the trailer and hid it in a depression in the yard, covering the body with a piece of plywood and some bags of trash.

Craney is alleged to have told police that he killed Goudreau because she abused him for his entire life and he “needed to end it.”

Court documents filed by prosecutors said that neighbors told police it was Craney who repeatedly physically abused Goudreau.

Goudreau’s neighbor, Sharon Gregory, told investigators that Goudreau visited her home with blood on her face after a fight with Craney two weeks before her death. Gregory told police that a week after that visit, Goudreau told her that she needed to leave her current living arrangements, but didn’t say why. Gregory said that Goudreau later said that she had returned home from a temporary stay away and was hit by Craney.

The court documents also state that neighbor Tim Gregory, husband of Sharon Gregory, said that he heard Craney say he could kill his grandmother and get away with it.

If convicted of murder, Craney faces 25 years to life in prison.

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