Left to right: Everton Thomas, Sherrie Parker, and Deshawn Thomas (Camden County Prosecutor’s Office).
A mother, father, and son have been arrested after the father allegedly killed a 48-year-old man in New Jersey before having his wife and child assist him by dismembering and disposing of the victim’s remains.
Everton Thomas, 41, has been charged with first-degree murder while his wife, 41-year-old Sherrie Parker, and his son, 22-year-old Deshawn Thomas, are facing one count each of desecration of human remains and tampering with physical evidence in the slaying of Harold Miller Jr., authorities announced. Miller’s body remained missing as of Thursday.
In addition to murder, Everton Thomas was also charged with desecration of human remains and tampering with physical evidence.
According to a news release from the Camden County Prosecutor’s Office, on June 14, Miller was reported missing to the Deptford Township Police Department. The report said Miller’s last known whereabouts had been Camden, New Jersey, where he was said to be “playing cards with friends” in the early morning hours of June 12. His car was found empty on June 14, in Pennsauken, New Jersey, which is about 4 miles east of Camden.
Investigators said they obtained surveillance footage and cellphone data confirming that Miller entered a residence in the 2600 block of Baird Boulevard in Camden just before 11:30 a.m. on June 12.
“Moments later, the video footage captured the sound of what appeared to be a single gunshot,” the release states. “Miller was never seen leaving the property. However, the video captured a man — later identified as Everton Thomas — moving Miller’s vehicle and parking it where it was ultimately located in Pennsauken.”
Love true crime? Sign up for our newsletter, The Law&Crime Docket, to get the latest real-life crime stories delivered right to your inbox.
Evidence implicating Everton Thomas’ family soon followed, police said.
“Detectives subsequently learned that Sherrie Parker and Deshawn Thomas purchased a chainsaw, containers, trash bags, and other cleaning supplies after Miller was observing entering the residence, but never exiting it,” prosecutors wrote. “Additionally, surveillance video showed Everton Thomas and Dashawn Thomas making several trips to the Tamarack Apartments dumpsters and loading containers and trash bags into a vehicle before leaving the city.”
Court documents obtained by Patch Media stated a witness who lived in the Thomases’ home told investigators that Deshawn Thomas said his dad woke him up and said he needed his son to help him “chop up” a body. A different witness reportedly told investigators they heard power tools being used in the basement and that they heard Sherrie Parker say, “A wife gotta do what she gotta do” and, “I wish they never find him,” referring to her husband.
During a search of Everton Thomas’ residence on June 20, investigators said he was found to be in possession of a loaded firearm with one round in the chamber and nine in the 10-round magazine. There were also several “bloodstains inside the residence” that were brought to a lab for testing.
The day after the search of his home, before he was charged with a crime, authorities said Everton Thomas fled from the U.S. to Canada.
As the investigation continued, subsequent forensic testing confirmed Harold Miller Jr. was the source of the DNA from the bloodstains found inside the Thomases’ home, authorities said.
The Burlington County Times reported that Everton Thomas and Miller were “acquaintances.”
Charges were filed against all three family members on Sept. 5. A motive for the alleged murder has not yet been disclosed.
Everton Thomas was taken into custody by U.S. Customs and Border Patrol on Sept. 8, at the Port of Buffalo, New York, when he crossed from Canada back into the U.S. on a commercial bus. He is currently being held in a local correctional facility as he awaits extradition back to New Jersey.
Sherrie Parker and Deshawn Thomas were also arrested on Sept. 8 — by a U.S. Marshals Service regional fugitive task force. They are currently being held at the Camden County Correctional Facility.
It was not immediately clear when the family would appear in court.
Â
