Two Republican members of the New Jersey municipal council have been assassinated in the past week, with the most recent killing occurring in the hamlet of Franklin on Wednesday.
NJ.com stated that Russell Heller, a 51-year-old Republican borough councillor in Milford, was shot and killed in the parking lot of the PSE&G facility where he works.
According to the article, police stated that the victim was targeted by a disgruntled former employee.
Gary Curtis, 58 years old, subsequently committed suicide while sitting in his vehicle in neighboring Bridgewater, New Jersey, according to authorities.
The Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office stated in a news release on Wednesday that the attack occurred shortly after 7:00 a.m. ET that day, and Heller was pronounced dead upon the arrival of first responders.
“Responding Officers encountered a deceased adult male suffering from a gunshot wound,” the release said. “Emergency Medical Personnel from an area Trauma Center responded to the scene where the male was pronounced deceased.”
The announcement stated that authorities were still seeking a possible motivation for the shooting.
NJ.com reported on Thursday that officials stated Heller’s murder had “no political links.”
The mayor of Milford issued a statement remembering Heller as “full of life.”
“The Milford Borough Council is deeply saddened by the loss and our hearts go out to his family,” Mayor Henri Schepens said in the statement, according to NJ.com. “He was so full of life, it’s just unbelievable that he’s gone. Something like this has never happened in borough history. We are very shaken by this.”
New Jersey councilmember Russell Heller was shot and killed in his car Wednesday in an apparent murder-suicide:https://t.co/B87zpuVpC5
— Gothamist (@Gothamist) February 9, 2023
More on this story via The Western Journal:
Heller’s death followed the Feb. 2 slaying of another New Jersey borough council member.
Councilwoman Eunice Dwumfour of Sayreville was shot multiple times as she sat in her vehicle near her apartment. CONTINUE READING…