Suspect surrenders in N.J. killing of Marine
CAMDEN, N.J. - Authorities say a suspect has surrendered in the murder of a Marine Reservist who was shot in the back trying to break up a fight outside a bar near his southern New Jersey home.
Camden County Prosecutor Warren Faulk says 31-year-old Darrell Crone is charged with murder in the slaying of 27-year-old Timothy Loper. Faulk says the Pine Hill resident was struck early Sunday by "multiple bullets" outside the 20 Horse Tavern in Camden.
Loper died from a gunshot wound to his
back that pierced his heart, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
CBS Philly reports Crone turned himself in at the Camden Police Department on Wednesday morning.
Crone is expected to be arraigned Thursday.
Loper, who grew up in Blackwood, was
in his second year in the Marine Reserve. He had been stationed in North
Carolina and Afghanistan.
A police chief with the Camden
department reportedly said, “This young man had bravely served his country and
deserved much better than being killed in such a senseless act of violence.”
The victim left behind a wife and a 6-year-old daughter.