GA- Suspect in carjacking a molester (killed by passerby)

Posted in Related Deaths

9-17-2005 Georgia:

The carjacker-kidnapper shot dead Monday by a passer-by in Cobb County had a conviction for sex crimes and has been tentatively connected to a rape last week in Acworth, police said Tuesday.

Despite his conviction for child molestation and statutory rape, Brian O'Neil Clark, 25, does not appear in the state's database for sexual offenders, and state officials were at a lost to explain why.

As details came out about her abductor Tuesday, so too did a picture of the victim. Kimberly Boyd, 30, was kidnapped at gunpoint shortly after leaving her office Monday morning, police said. She died when Clark turned into the path of a cement truck, causing a collision.

Friends say she was considering a shift from working mother to stay-at-home mom.

Investigators also revealed that Boyd had been shot as she struggled with her abductor. The coroner did not detail the extent of her wound, but police believe she was alive when the cement truck hit her Toyota Sequoia broadside.

As Clark was fleeing that accident, he was shot dead by motorist Shawn Roberts, who had seen Boyd and Clark struggling and followed as the car careened down U.S. 41 in Acworth. Cobb police Lt. Kevin Flynn, said Tuesday that Roberts, 31, was cooperating and appeared to have acted lawfully.

Roberts said he believes that killing Clark probably saved more lives.

Clark had a history of criminal offenses in Cherokee and Cobb counties, according to police and court records.

In April 2002, he was arrested in Illinois and returned to Georgia to face child molestation, statutory rape and burglary charges in Cobb, where he received an 18-month sentence, jail records show.

In Cherokee, Clark was convicted in 2004 of first-degree forgery and was released June 13 after a year in state prison.

Family, friends mourn

Clark had been placed on the sexual offenders database operated by the Georgia Bureau of Investigations after his conviction in Cobb, GBI spokesman John Bankhead said. He was removed from the list while serving time for the forgery conviction, but should have been added after his release three months ago, Bankhead said.

25-to-life in samurai sword slaying of stepfather

Posted in Related Deaths

1-17-2007 New York:

A man convicted of murder after nearly beheading his stepfather with a samurai sword was sentenced Wednesday to a term of 25 years-to-life in prison.

Zachary Gibian, 20, was convicted last month of second-degree murder in the February 2005 death of his stepfather, Scott Nager, who was killed as he slept on his living room couch.

Gibian testified that Nager had sexually abused him since age 15 -- a claim prosecutors termed ''preposterous.''

Gibian, of Hauppauge, made no statement at his sentencing.

The victim's sister, Anne Leonardi, speaking on behalf of the family, had asked the court to give Gibian the maximum sentence.

Gibian took responsibility for the crimes in written and videotaped confessions to police just hours after the killing, but changed his story on the witness stand, insisting it was his mother who inflicted the fatal blows after she discovered her husband sexually abusing him.

Prosecutors contended that Nager, 51, a retired New York City police officer, was not a sexual predator but a concerned parent faced with a rebellious teenager.

Gibian, the lone defense witness, claimed that on numerous occasions, beginning when he was about 15, Nager got drunk and repeatedly forced him to perform a sex act _ sometimes at gunpoint.

None of the abuse claims were made in Gibian's written and taped confessions.

His mother, Laura Nager, has insisted through her attorney that she was not the killer. She has not been charged with any crime -- although investigators say the case remains an open investigation.

After the sentencing, her lawyer, Steven Wilutis, said prosecutors told him to expect an arrest, although he was not told on what charge. Suffolk County Assistant District Attorney John Scott Prudenti declined to comment, other to say ''stay tuned.'' ..more.. by FRANK ELTMAN

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'Jury is deadlocked'
After samurai jury's note, judge tells panel to continue talking and 'be willing to change your decision'
12-12-2006 New York:

Two hours into their fifth day of deliberation in the murder trial of Zachary Gibian, jurors announced yesterday that they were unable to reach a verdict.

After receiving a note that read simply, "The jury is deadlocked," State Supreme Court Justice Robert W. Doyle instructed the six men and six women to keep at it.

"Frankly, it wasn't intended to be easy," Doyle told them.

Doyle encouraged jurors to "be willing to change your decision," but not to do so out of "mere acquiescence."

Gibian, 20, of Hauppauge, is charged with striking his stepfather, Scott Nager, twice in the neck and face with a samurai sword - severing his spinal cord and killing him instantly. Prosecutors have said Nager and Gibian had been arguing about disciplinary problems.

However, Gibian testified that his mother, Laura Nager, is the real killer - having exploded in a rage after discovering her husband was sexually abusing Gibian. The defendant said he confessed to police to protect his mother, who suffers from multiple sclerosis, and that she told him she would eventually take responsibility for the crime.

The "whodunit" mystery has appeared to be the focus of jurors, who have twice asked for each of Gibian's conflicting stories to be read back to them. After not making any requests of evidence since Thursday, jurors late yesterday asked to have testimony from Suffolk Police Sgt. Thomas Healy read back to them.

Healy was among the first police officers at the scene on Feb. 27, 2005. Jurors asked to hear only what he said about Laura Nager, who he described as having dry blood on her hands and walking with a cane.

Jurors also, for the second time, asked for an explanation from Doyle of "reasonable doubt," which they would have to overcome to find Gibian guilty. If convicted, Gibian faces a maximum of 25 years to life in prison.

For the fifth day of deliberation - as he had every day of the six-week trial - Scott Nager's father, Nathan Nager, waited anxiously on a court hallway bench for news.

"They could still come to a verdict," said Nager, 82, visibly frustrated by the jury's indecision. "I've always believed in the system. And hopefully I'm not disappointed."

Assistant District Attorney John Scott Prudenti said the wait was "tough," while defense attorney William Keahon of Islandia said Gibian remained "scared and frightened."

"Anyone on trial for their life would be," Keahon said. ..more.. by ALFONSO A. CASTILLO

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Gibian Gets 25 to Life in Samurai Sword Slay
1-17-2007 New York:
Unphased by testimony that Zachary Gibian suffered abuse at the hands of stepfather Scott Nager, a Supreme Court justice in Riverhead gave the 20-year-old the maximum sentence for Nager’s brutal murder with a samurai sword.

Justice Robert W. Doyle sentenced Gibian, of Hauppauge, to 25 years to life in prison for the murder, where Gibian nearly decapitated Nager with two slashes of the sword, which reportedly belonged to Nager. ..more.. by Long Island Press

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25-to-life in samurai sword slaying of stepfather
1-19-2007 New York:
.RIVERHEAD, N.Y.-- A man convicted of murder after nearly beheading his stepfather with a samurai sword was sentenced Wednesday to a term of 25 years-to-life in prison. Zachary Gibian, 20, was convicted last month of second-degree murder in the February 2005 death of his stepfather, Scott Nager, who was killed as he slept on his living room couch.

Gibian testified that Nager had sexually abused him since age 15 -- a claim prosecutors termed ''preposterous.'' Gibian, of Hauppauge, made no statement at his sentencing. The victim's sister, Anne Leonardi, speaking on behalf of the family, had asked the court to give Gibian the maximum sentence.

Gibian took responsibility for the crimes in written and videotaped confessions to police just hours after the killing, but changed his story on the witness stand, insisting it was his mother who inflicted the fatal blows after she discovered her husband sexually abusing him. Prosecutors contended that Nager, 51, a retired New York City police officer, was not a sexual predator but a concerned parent faced with a rebellious teenager.

Gibian, the lone defense witness, claimed that on numerous occasions, beginning when he was about 15, Nager got drunk and repeatedly forced him to perform a sex act _ sometimes at gunpoint. None of the abuse claims were made in Gibian's written and taped confessions. His mother, Laura Nager, has insisted through her attorney that she was not the killer. She has not been charged with any crime -- although investigators say the case remains an open investigation.

After the sentencing, her lawyer, Steven Wilutis, said prosecutors told him to expect an arrest, although he was not told on what charge. Suffolk County Assistant District Attorney John Scott Prudenti declined to comment, other to say ''stay tuned.'' ..more.. : by FRANK ELTMAN

Man says sex taunt triggered homicide

Posted in Related Deaths

4-14-2005 New York:

Suspect: Photos, abuse led to actions

ORISKANY -- Sexual comments about female family members preceded the bludgeoning that killed a North Bay man, according to statements made by the Rome man charged in the death of his uncle, authorities said.

Authorities also said Ricky B. LaGasse told them after his arrest Friday that his uncle, Paul W. Jansen, 61 -- whom LaGasse referred to as a "pedophile" -- had raped him about 30 years ago.

These statements, discussed by attorneys and Oneida County sheriff's investigators during a felony examination Wednesday in Oriskany Village Court, revealed some of the details surrounding a possible motive for Jansen's death.

Following the hearing, Judge Richard Montgomery referred the matter to an Oneida County grand jury, finding reasonable cause that LaGasse, 44, of West Embargo Street, Rome, should be charged with second-degree murder.

Jansen's body was found shortly before 5 a.m. Friday on the living room floor at his residence on Route 49, deputies said. An autopsy later concluded that Jansen was killed by blunt force trauma to the head.

As a shackled LaGasse wiped away tears, Sgt. Robert Nelson described the comments LaGasse reportedly made to investigators that morning.

When LaGasse -- who along with his brother had called 911 to report Jansen's condition -- learned of his uncle's death, he told investigators, "I hurt my uncle, man. Don't you understand. I hurt my uncle. I didn't mean to hurt him," Nelson recalled.

According to statements LaGasse made to Nelson, Jansen showed LaGasse photographs of LaGasse's sister and mother, then taunted LaGasse with sexual comments about the two women, LaGasse proceeded to hit Jansen three times.

LaGasse also said Jansen attacked him with knives, Nelson said. LaGasse's arms and body were covered with "superficial lacerations" -- still visible Wednesday as he sat in court -- when he was apprehended later that morning following an hour-long standoff at his Rome apartment, Nelson said.

LaGasse is being held in Oneida County jail without bail. ..more.. by ROCCO LaDUCA

Man Says He Killed His Father To Stop Sexual Abuse

Posted in Related Deaths

7-14-2005 Washington:

FEDERAL WAY - Police knew from the beginning that David Jaber was the main suspect in his father's murder.

Neighbors at Fred Jaber's retirement apartment complex found the 79-year-old with a butcher knife in his back.

"Residents or neighbors were comforting him at the time. He was conscious. He was able to talk. As police were talking to him, checking on him, he identified his son as the assailant," said Commander Greg Wilson with the Federal Way Police Department.

What detectives didn't know was, why would a son kill his father?

New court documents may provide the answer. In them, David Jaber claims he suffered years of sexual abuse by his father that continued until the day he died.

Jaber claims "His father had been molesting him since he was 4 or 5-years-old. Part of the condition of David moving in was that he'd perform oral sex on his father."

In February 2005, Jaber moved in with his father at the Willamette Retirement Apartments.

In the court documents, David Jaber told police on June 26 he snapped. He talked to his mother on the phone to tell her about the years of alleged abuse. Court documents say she told him she didn't care.

KOMO 4 News tried to talk to Delores Jaber, but there was no answer at her SeaTac home. Delores was divorced from her husband and clearly afraid of her son. Since the beginning of the year, she's had a protection order against David. In the order she wrote: "I can see the rage in his eyes. I am fearful of his behavior. He is a totally different person since his depression." ..more.. by Leslie Knopp

Rape tale led to strip club manager killing man in Davie, police say

Posted in Related Deaths

7-7-2008 Florida:

Strip club manager is accused of fatally shooting man, 18

Davie - Three years ago, Richard Rojas, 18, was shot dead at his ex-girlfriend's front door. Now, she and others who once said they were defending themselves from Rojas are facing murder charges.

In July 2005, a man called police to say he'd killed a burglar in the gated Chelsea at Ivanhoe community. Investigators quickly learned the alleged burglar was the former boyfriend of Christin Bilotti, then 17, who lived in the house.

Bilotti told her family that Rojas raped her, and family members later told police that Rojas had broken into the house on several occasions and threatened to kill the girl and her brother.

Christin Bilotti's father asked three employees from the strip club he owned to help protect the family. Police said one of those employees, John W. Pacchiana, shot Rojas.

No arrests were made in the case.

Until this year.

Christin Bilotti's boyfriend at the time of the killing, Julio "Eddie" Arce , now 22, met with police in January and told them the Bilottis conspired to murder Rojas.

In February, authorities arrested Christin Bilotti, now 20; her father, Michael Bilotti, 60; Pacchiana, 36; Wayne Palazzola, 40; and Richard Corbin, 32. They were charged with murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, and their cases are now winding through the courts.

Defense lawyers said Arce is not a reliable witness because he told police several different stories in interviews after the killing.

"The testimony of the witness they're going to use is beyond incredible," said Fred Haddad, Michael Bilotti's defense attorney. "The whole thing is ridiculous."

Rojas' family said the arrests signal they are closer to getting the justice they have prayed for since the slaying.

"They [detectives] told us from the start that this did not look the way it seemed to be initially, that this would take time," said Rojas' father, Henry Rojas, of Miami. "To hear all these people were involved in an 18-year-old's murder is mind-boggling. He was just starting his life."

Detectives found no evidence a rape took place. Instead, investigators said, Rojas and Christin were friends who called each other often in the days before the killing.

Lead investigator Detective Jeffery S. Yaeger, said interviews, phone records and video surveillance show what really happened. According to his report:

On the afternoon of July 12, 2005, Christin Bilotti told then-boyfriend Arce that Rojas had raped her. Arce insisted she tell her parents. Michael Bilotti became angry, made a phone call and told someone to bring a weapon. Pacchiana, Palazzola and Corbin — all managers at Bilotti's Secrets nightclub in Miami — came to the house.

Palazzola drove Christin Bilotti, her brother, and Arce to Pacchiana and Corbin's apartment in Pembroke Pines.

Detectives do not say why Rojas might have left his south Miami home for the Bilotti house later that night. But on the way there, he called Christin Bilotti's cell phone. She was in the car with Palazzola and Arce, and put Rojas on speaker. Rojas and Arce argued.

"'Egg him on, you know, tell him you want to fight, tell him this and that, we'll grab him," Palazzola reportedly said.

Rojas thought Christin Bilotti was at her house, and drove there.

In the entryway, Pacchiana shot at Rojas, striking him in the face and neck, police said. Pacchiana then called police, saying he shot a burglar.

Later that morning, Arce overheard Corbin telling Palazzola that Rojas fought them.

As the defendants approach trial, Henry Rojas said the family's wounds are reopening.

"Nothing is going to bring my son back," Henry Rojas said. "I just want justice." ..News Source.. by Macollvie Jean-François | South Florida Sun-Sentinel

WA- 3 deaths called murder-suicide

Posted in Related Deaths

12-12-2005 Washington:

Pullman police believe shooter is among bodies found in condo

PULLMAN – The shooting deaths of three people at a condominium complex here appeared to be a double murder-suicide, Pullman police said Sunday.

Louissa A. Thompson, 27; Peter A. Zornes, 25, of Oakesdale, Wash.; and Trevor S. Saunders, 29, of Moscow, were found dead inside Thompson's unit at the Statesman Condominiums, 1220 NE State St., on Saturday night.

Detectives said Sunday they recovered a semi-automatic pistol from the unit and believed the shooter is one of the people found dead.

Police were summoned to the complex about 7 p.m. Saturday when one of the people killed didn't show up for work at a Pullman store. They entered through a back sliding door left open and found the three bodies. Police did not give a motive for the shootings.

The exact cause of death won't be known until autopsies are completed in the next several days.

Stan Cox, the manager of the condominium complex, said Thompson moved into the ground-floor unit in August and had two small children. He did not think the children were home at the time of the killings. He did not know the two men.

Cox said residents at the complex are mostly retired people and graduate students and faculty at Washington State University. He did not know if Thompson was a WSU student.

"It's a pretty quiet place," Cox said.

The condominium complex was also the site of the town's last homicide in 1996, when Dorothy Martin, 89, was asphyxiated during a burglary.

The keys from the manager's apartment were stolen to gain access to Martin's unit.

"I found her," Cox said. "I came awful close to doing the same thing yesterday."

Cox said he heard loud noises, but not gunshots, coming from Thompson's unit Saturday and knocked on the door, but no one answered. He did not know what time that was.

"We didn't hear any shots. We didn't see anything until we woke up and opened the curtains and saw the yellow police tape," said Carol Bagby, a condominium resident.

Carol and her husband, Carroll, moved into the complex three months ago.

Their ground-floor unit has floor-to-ceiling windows facing the condominium's courtyard and is adjacent to Thompson's unit.

The Bagbys watched as detectives and forensics specialists with the Washington State Patrol crime lab came and went all day Sunday.

"This is really a quiet part of town," Carroll Bagby said. "We moved here from Tacoma to get away from this kind of (violence)." ..more.. by Sara Leaming

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WSU Honors Graduate Killed In Pullman
12-13-2005 Washington:

One of the men found shot to death in a Pullman condo was a WSU honors graduate and the other was a registered sex offender. They were found Saturday with a dead woman in her condo. Police said it's a double-murder-homicide, but they're now saying yet who fired or what the motive or relationship may have been.

University officials said Peter Zornes, 25, of Oakesdale graduated with honors two years ago in neuroscience. A university administrator said he also coached Little League baseball and played the trumpet in the university's jazz ensemble. Also found dead was Trevor S. Saunders, 29, of Moscow, a registered sex offender in Idaho who was convicted nine years ago of rape in Latah County.

They were in the condo unit belonging to 27-year-old Louissa Thompson. Neighbors said they heard sounds Saturday morning but did not recognize them as gunfire. The bodies were found after police were asked to go to the apartment to check on Zornes after he didn't show up for work. ..more.. : by KIRTV.com