2 Years After Body Found In Woods Arrest Made In Somerset County Homicide

FRANKLIN, NJ — A Philadelphia man was arrested in connection with the murder of a Franklin Township man, who was found dead in the woods on April 27, 2020.

Juaquan S. Fitzgerald, 33, of Hamilton Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was charged with first-degree murder, second-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, second-degree unlawful possession of a weapon, and second-degree unlawfully disturbing human remains, announced Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald, Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Chief of County Detectives John W. Fodor, and Franklin Township Public Safety Director Quovella M. Maeweather.

On April 29, 2020, at around 6:38 p.m., a call reported suspicious activity at a home on Park Street, Franklin Township.

Franklin Township Police Officers spoke with people near the home who told officers that they had found a body in the wooded area towards the back of the home, said McDonald. Read More: Body Found In Woods, Homicide Investigation Launched In Franklin

Officers found the dead body and secured the area as a crime scene. Detectives from the Franklin Township Police Department, the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit, the Crime Scene Investigations Unit, and Investigators from the New Jersey Northern Regional Medical Examiner’s Office investigated.

An autopsy performed by the Regional Medical Examiner’s Office positively identified the man as Duane S. Banks, 27, of Park Street, Franklin Township. His death was deemed a homicide, said McDonald. Read More: Police Identify Body Found In Woods In Franklin

A lengthy follow-up investigation ultimately resulted in the arrest of Fitzgerald on Aug. 31, 2022, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Fitzgerald was arrested with the help of the Philadelphia Police Department without incident and taken to Curran Fromhold Correctional Facility in Philadelphia. He will remain at the facility pending an extradition hearing in this matter.

Anyone with information relating to the homicide is asked to contact the Somerset County Prosecutors Office Major Crimes Unit at 908-231-7100 or the Franklin Township Police Department at 732-873-5533 or via the STOPit app. The STOPit app allows citizens to provide anonymous reports including videos and photos. STOPit can be downloaded to your smart phone for free at the Google Play Store or Apple App Store, access code: SOMERSETNJ.

Information can also be provided through the Somerset County Crime Stoppers’ Tip Line at 1-888-577-TIPS (8477). All anonymous STOPit reports, and Crime Stopper tips will be kept confidential.

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