Jury Selection To Begin For Couple In Brick Man's Murder: Report

FREEHOLD, NJ — Jury selection is expected to begin this week in the murder trial of two Monmouth County residents accused of murdering a Brick Township man and then dumping his body in Shark River Park in Wall, according to a report.

The Asbury Park Press reported jury selection in the trial of Raquel Garajau, 20, and Joseph Villani, 21, on charges in the death of Trupal Patel, 29, of Brick, is set to begin on Wednesday.

Patel's body was found on the slope of an embankment along Gully Road in Shark River Park in late February by a Monmouth County park ranger who was collecting litter in the area, Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni said. Villani was arrested two days later.

Patel had been reported missing to the Asbury Park Police Department by a friend on Feb. 9 and a black Jaguar he had been driving before he disappeared was discovered abandoned on an Asbury Park street on that same day.

Villani and Garajau were indicted in May on charges of first-degree murder, first-degree felony murder, first-degree robbery, second-degree possession of a firearm for an unlawful purpose and second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, Gramiccioni said. Authorities said the investigation had determined Patel had been shot to death in Villani's garage as part of plan to rob Patel of money and marijuana, according to an Asbury Park Press report.

Since the indictment, there has been lengthy legal wrangling over evidence in the case, according to the Asbury Park Press report, including text messages that prosecutors say show Garajau was a willing participant in the murder. Read more here.

Patel had been arrested twice on drug distribution charges in the 18 months prior to the murder, including a May 2016 arrest where he was charged with distributing marijuana and psychedelic mushrooms after investigators seized psilocybin mushrooms, 4.6 pounds of marijuana and $61,000 in cash after an investigation into distribution in Brick and Point Pleasant.

And he was arrested in Wall Township in 2015 on marijuana distribution charges after police found 938 grams — about 33 ounces — of marijuana in his possession.

Trupal Patel photo via Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office