Clark Mayor, Community Come to Grips With High-Profile Murder and Media Frenzy

The you-couldn't-make-this-up nature of Thursday's events has thrust the once quiet town of Clark into the media spotlight again, as the community came to grips with the arrest of alleged killer Caleb Lawrence McGillvary, aka Internet celeb "Kai the Hatchet-Wielding Hitchhiker."

After a national search, for the murder of Starlite Drive resident and local attorney Joseph Galfy.

It was the third such high-profile case in recent months, including the faked kidnapping and worldwide Twitter frenzy over runaway teen Kara Alongi in October and the

"This many episodes in less than one year is just completely unheard of for this town," Clark Mayor Sal Bonaccorso told Patch on Thursday night.

When the news vans arrived in Clark once again to cover Galfy's murder on Monday, no one – most especially, this reporter – could have seen what was coming next. 

An Internet celebrity? When the tip came in, I immediately assumed it was a joke. Moments later, an email announcing yesterday's press conference had me preparing for the oddest news day of my career.

Around noon, I posted what I knew: for whatever reason, this man was our unlikely suspect: "Police Searching For Internet Celeb 'Kai the Hatchet-Wielding Hitchhiker' in Clark Homicide"

In the story's comments section and on our Facebook page, you shared my shock: "This is insane," wrote Clark resident Jayme Lee Morrison on Facebook. "Doesn't make sense at all," chimed in Cheryl Petralia Weaver. Others were angry: "face it the surburbanville vision of this town is long gone!!!!" wrote one commenter.

And what do we know about "Kai the Hatchet-Wielding Hitchhiker?" McGillvary became an Internet sensation in February: After saving a woman by smashing her attacker in the head with his hatchet, McGillvary’s offbeat personality in an interview made for a YouTube video that garnered nearly 4 million views (see it here - warning, contains profanity). He also recently appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live.

For his part, in a Tuesday post on his Facebook page, McGillvary alleges that he was drugged and raped, and asks readers, "what would you do?" One commenter suggests that McGillvary use his famous hatchet, to which McGillvary replied "i like your idea." (We've also learned that before leaving Clark, McGillvary made a stop at Bistro 1051.)

In a May 10 post, McGillvary details his abusive childhood. In another, the drifter, who calls himself happily "homefree" not homeless, thanks those who have hosted him, writing "ive spent time squattin, couchsurfing, guesting, camping, in hotels, motels, and even the holiday inn. im so happy that you invited me into your lives and even put up with my scandalous sleep deprived or drunk ass self when my ego showed up. i could write a book about all these adventures."

At a Thursday afternoon press conference, Union County Prosecutor Theodore J. Romankow explained that Galfy picked up McGillvary in Times Square on Saturday, May 11, and that McGillvary stayed overnight at Galfy's home before leaving from the Rahway train station for Asbury Park on Sunday. Romankow says McGillvary returned to Galfy's home later on Sunday, was picked up by Galfy at the Rahway train station and allegedly committed the murder on Sunday evening. McGillvary then left and traveled to Asbury Park, Philadelphia and Glassboro, where he met up with two of his fans, who are providing information to police.

Around 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, McGillvary was arrested at the Greyhound Bus Terminal in Philadelphia by members of the Philadelphia Police Department. Police have yet to determine how McGillvary and Galfy met in Times Square and why.

McGillvary will be processed in Philadelphia and returned to New Jersey in the coming days. A legal fund created by McGillvary supporters is circulating to raise money for his bail, set at $3 million. So far it's only raised $66.

"He went from a hero to a zero," says Bonaccorso. "He's in custody of authorities and, hopefully, he'll spend his life in prison. That would be a nice thing."

Meanwhile, Galfy's family and friends will gather today in Watchung to lay him to rest. Galfy, 73, was well-known in the community and worked as a partner at the Rahway law firm Kochanski, Baron and Galfy. He was found dead, severely beaten and in his underwear and socks, in his bedroom by police on Monday – a victim of blunt force trauma, according to his autopsy.

Bonaccorso knew Galfy from the Clark Chamber of Commerce and around town, and describes him as a gentleman, friendly, professional and polite. In the wake of all of this, Bonaccorso says he wants Clark residents to know that these are isolated incidents in an otherwise very safe town.

"I don’t know what was in Joe's mind," says Bonaccorso. "I wish he would have shown better judgement. He obviously brought this man into his home. This was not a break in, this was not a someone running around Clark looking for someone to get. The Clark Police Department and Clark Township cannot be held responsible. Unfortunately, this is more of a self-inflicted tragedy than it is of a random nature. I do feel very bad for him and his family."

Bonaccorso praises the work of Clark Police and the Union County Homicide Task Force for quickly solving the case. Clark Police Chief Alan Scherb, who took over the department at the end of 2011, has seen a career's worth of big incidents in just a few months.

Bonaccorso wants to remind residents that they should always call the police department with anything they deem even remotely suspicious and warns those who are dating or meeting people on the Internet to be careful.

"I’m very sad to say that, in today's world, we really need to get to know somebody before we bring them into our home," he says. "This is a reminder that we sometimes live in a not-so-nice society. In the world around us, there’s a lot of kooks out there."

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READ MORE:

CAUGHT: 'Kai the Hatchet-Wielding Hitchhiker' Arrested in Philadelphia

UPDATE: 'Suspicious Death' of Clark Resident Now Ruled a Homicide