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Re: Gruesome Negroid murder of 2 NJ Caucasian store employees "The Funcoland Murder T
Trial begins in'02 slayings
Essex man accused in Funcoland killings
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
BY MARGARET McHUGH
Star-Ledger Staff
A prosecutor pointed to Omar Thomas and told a Morris County jury that Thomas murdered two employees of a Roxbury video game store to cover up a robbery he'd orchestrated using his two cousins. The jury will not only hear from the cousins but also from Thomas himself, in his videotaped confession.
But Thomas claims his cousins, who stand to receive drastically reduced sentences for their cooperation, were the culprits and that he knew nothing of their planned crime when the three traveled from Essex County to the Roxbury Mall on Route 10 on Dec. 1, 2002.
"The defense in this case is denial," attorney David Glazer said. "He had no idea what they were up to."
Afte
r three weeks of jury selec tion, a panel of eight women and six men yesterday heard opening arguments in a 6-year-old homicide case that could send the 31-year-old Irvington resident to prison for life. Thomas had been indicted for capital murder, but New Jersey abolished the death penalty in December.
Relatives of both the victims, 26-year-old Eric Rewoldt and 21-year-old Jeff Eresman, listened quietly as Morris County Assistant Prosecutor John McNamara Jr. described how the two Funcoland store employees were killed in the suburban strip mall.
Eresman had rung up three customers, including Thomas, in the 12 minutes after the store opened at 11 a.m., McNamara said. Authorities believe Thomas' then- 14-year-old cousin, Craig Thomas Jr., shot Eresman in the head in a rear storeroom, and Thomas finished him off with a second shot to the back of the head.
Minutes later, Rewoldt, the store's manager, arrived to find the front door locked. Within seconds of stepping inside, Omar Thomas, w
ho knew Rewoldt on a first-name basis from his many visits to Fun coland, shot him.
"That man put a bullet in his head from point-blank range," McNamara said. "He killed him be cause he wanted to get away with a crime. At the core of his crime was simple greed."
Another employee had been scheduled to work that Sunday morning, but called in sick, the prosecutor noted. Just before Re woldt arrived at the store, a customer tried to enter, but the door was locked and one of the three men inside said the store was closed, McNamara said.
Police said the three fled with $10,000 worth of game consoles and games. Eight months went by be fore Thomas surfaced as a suspect, and police arrested him and cousins Craig Thomas, now 20, and Rahman Vaughn, 29, both of Newark, in November 2003.
Omar Thomas initially blamed his cousins, but his story changed over 37 hours of questioning, and by the end, he admitted on videotape that he shot both victims. In that final version, a relaxed Omar Thomas
can be seen using his tur key sandwich, as well as cups, pens, a tape recorder and a chair to help demonstrate how the killings went down. Thomas said they had planned the robbery, but it went awry when the younger cousin acci dentally shot Eresman.
Glazer suggested investigators influenced what Thomas confessed to, and he questioned why only five hours of his time in custody were recorded. Glazer pointed out that the cousins changed their versions of events. Most notably, Craig Thomas claimed Omar Thomas was the sole shooter when the younger cousin took a plea deal in 2004, but months later admitted that he shot Eresman first.
Out of earshot of the jury, McNamara objected to Glazer questioning why prosecutors had given plea deals to the co-defendants if they believed his client's confession was so reliable. While Craig Thomas and Rahman Vaughn both pleaded guilty to murder, which carries a minimum prison term of 30 years, their deals call for Craig Thomas to serve 8 1/2 years and Vaughn to
serve 17 years, according to court papers. Superior Court Judge Salem Ahto said he would rule tomorrow whether he needs to remedy Glazer's comment.
http://www.nj.com/starledger/stories/index.ssf?/base/news-5/1212467732102240.xml&coll=1
Trial begins in'02 slayings
Essex man accused in Funcoland killings
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
BY MARGARET McHUGH
Star-Ledger Staff
A prosecutor pointed to Omar Thomas and told a Morris County jury that Thomas murdered two employees of a Roxbury video game store to cover up a robbery he'd orchestrated using his two cousins. The jury will not only hear from the cousins but also from Thomas himself, in his videotaped confession.
But Thomas claims his cousins, who stand to receive drastically reduced sentences for their cooperation, were the culprits and that he knew nothing of their planned crime when the three traveled from Essex County to the Roxbury Mall on Route 10 on Dec. 1, 2002.
"The defense in this case is denial," attorney David Glazer said. "He had no idea what they were up to."
Afte
r three weeks of jury selec tion, a panel of eight women and six men yesterday heard opening arguments in a 6-year-old homicide case that could send the 31-year-old Irvington resident to prison for life. Thomas had been indicted for capital murder, but New Jersey abolished the death penalty in December.
Relatives of both the victims, 26-year-old Eric Rewoldt and 21-year-old Jeff Eresman, listened quietly as Morris County Assistant Prosecutor John McNamara Jr. described how the two Funcoland store employees were killed in the suburban strip mall.
Eresman had rung up three customers, including Thomas, in the 12 minutes after the store opened at 11 a.m., McNamara said. Authorities believe Thomas' then- 14-year-old cousin, Craig Thomas Jr., shot Eresman in the head in a rear storeroom, and Thomas finished him off with a second shot to the back of the head.
Minutes later, Rewoldt, the store's manager, arrived to find the front door locked. Within seconds of stepping inside, Omar Thomas, w
ho knew Rewoldt on a first-name basis from his many visits to Fun coland, shot him.
"That man put a bullet in his head from point-blank range," McNamara said. "He killed him be cause he wanted to get away with a crime. At the core of his crime was simple greed."
Another employee had been scheduled to work that Sunday morning, but called in sick, the prosecutor noted. Just before Re woldt arrived at the store, a customer tried to enter, but the door was locked and one of the three men inside said the store was closed, McNamara said.
Police said the three fled with $10,000 worth of game consoles and games. Eight months went by be fore Thomas surfaced as a suspect, and police arrested him and cousins Craig Thomas, now 20, and Rahman Vaughn, 29, both of Newark, in November 2003.
Omar Thomas initially blamed his cousins, but his story changed over 37 hours of questioning, and by the end, he admitted on videotape that he shot both victims. In that final version, a relaxed Omar Thomas
can be seen using his tur key sandwich, as well as cups, pens, a tape recorder and a chair to help demonstrate how the killings went down. Thomas said they had planned the robbery, but it went awry when the younger cousin acci dentally shot Eresman.
Glazer suggested investigators influenced what Thomas confessed to, and he questioned why only five hours of his time in custody were recorded. Glazer pointed out that the cousins changed their versions of events. Most notably, Craig Thomas claimed Omar Thomas was the sole shooter when the younger cousin took a plea deal in 2004, but months later admitted that he shot Eresman first.
Out of earshot of the jury, McNamara objected to Glazer questioning why prosecutors had given plea deals to the co-defendants if they believed his client's confession was so reliable. While Craig Thomas and Rahman Vaughn both pleaded guilty to murder, which carries a minimum prison term of 30 years, their deals call for Craig Thomas to serve 8 1/2 years and Vaughn to
serve 17 years, according to court papers. Superior Court Judge Salem Ahto said he would rule tomorrow whether he needs to remedy Glazer's comment.
http://www.nj.com/starledger/stories/index.ssf?/base/news-5/1212467732102240.xml&coll=1