The murder of a New Jersey man who was allegedly killed and dismembered by three members of the same family was a “deliberately planned, brutally violent assassination,” according to prosecutors.
Suspect Everton Thomas was taken into custody earlier this month at the Port of Buffalo by U.S. Customs and Protection agents in connection with the disappearance of Harold “Hal” Miller Jr. Authorities said he’d been attempting to flee to Canada before he was arrested on charges including murder, desecration of human remains and tampering with physical evidence.
Everton is accused of killing Miller and then enlisting the help of his wife, 41-year-old Sherrie Parker, and his 22-year-old son, Deshawn Thomas, to cut up the body. They are also facing charges of desecration of human remains and tampering with physical evidence, according to the Camden County Prosecutor’s Office.
Miller was initially reported missing on June 14, after family members found his vehicle in Pennsauken on the same day. He was last seen alive days earlier playing cards with friends in Camden on June 12.
Handout
Harold “Hal” Miller Jr. was initially reported missing on June 14. (Handout)
Prosecutors during a hearing this week said they have sufficient evidence to build a case against each of the suspects, including physical and digital evidence, NJ.com reported. They said they discovered Miller’s cell phone inside his vehicle and that his last phone call was to Thomas.
While Thomas has acknowledged receiving the call, he has claimed the last time he saw the victim was when they played poker together the night of June 11 and into early the following morning.
There is also surveillance video showing Miller entering Thomas’ residence on the 2600 block of Baird Boulevard in Camden on June 12 shortly before 11:30 a.m., police said, noting that a gunshot was reported in the area a short time later.
“The defendant summoned this victim to his residence and, judge, he’s killed immediately with a single gunshot as soon as he walked into that residence,” the prosecutor said, per NJ.com. “The facts show that this was clearly a deliberately planned, brutally violent assassination of this victim.”
The defendants then purchased a chainsaw and other supplies — including containers, cleaning materials, heavy duty contractor bags, multiple bags of ice, gloves, duct tape and plastic sheeting — before cutting up Miller’s body. His remains have still not been found and motive for the killing remains unclear.
