Two Suspects Indicted on First Degree Murder Charges in Connection with Brutal Killing of Lakewood NJ Man

An Ocean County grand jury recently indicted two men accused of murdering a Lakewood NJ man on Christmas Eve.

The violent crime was allegedly committed on December 24, 2015, at a residence located on Laguna Lane in Lakewood, New Jersey. The victim, a 45-year-old man who lived at the house, was discovered by police that same night after responding to a call from a concerned relative of the victim. Apparently, the family member had not heard from the victim for a few days and became worried about his wellbeing. When Lakewood NJ police officers went to the victim’s Laguna Lane home around 8:00 p.m., they came across his lifeless body in the doorway of a bedroom inside the house.

The victim had sustained a traumatic head injury and was pronounced dead at the scene. Ocean County medical examiners later conducted an autopsy on the body and determined that the victim died as a result of blunt force trauma to his head.

Lakewood police officers and Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office detectives conducted a joint investigation into the killing and soon identified two men as the prime suspects in the homicide. The murder suspects are a 23-year-old man from Sussex NJ and a 24-year-old man from Sussex NJ. Police captured the 23-year-old suspect at a Sussex pizzeria on January 4 and apprehended the 24-year-old suspect at a Church Street residence on the same day.

It is believed that at least one of the suspects used to live with the victim in Lakewood, New Jersey.

The suspects were charged with multiple crimes, including first-degree murder, felony murder, robbery, and burglary.

Now the two suspects could be headed to trial in Ocean County Superior Court after a grand jury indicted them on the first-degree murder charges.

An interesting wrinkle to this criminal case is the fact that the 24-year-old suspect’s mother has also been charged in connection with the homicide. She faces charges for hindering apprehension because she allegedly helped to conceal evidence of the murder.

While the criminal charges remain pending, the suspects are being held at the Ocean County Jail in Toms River NJ on separate $1 million bail amounts. Meanwhile, the female suspect accused of helping to cover up the crime reportedly secured her release from jail by posting a $250,000 bail amount.

To learn more about this case, access the following article: 2 indicted on charges they killed N.J. man found on Christmas Eve