Short Hills Mall Carjacker Who Killed Attorney Gets 30 Years

SHORT HILLS, NJ — The man who pulled the trigger and killed Hoboken attorney Dustin Friedland during a carjacking at the Short Hills Mall in 2013 has been sentenced to three decades in prison, reports say.

On Thursday, a Superior Court judge sentenced Hanif Thompson, 32, of Irvington, to 30 years without the possibility of release. Thompson, the man who prosecutors say fired the shot that killed Friedland, previously pleaded guilty to murder and unlawful possession of a weapon, NorthJersey.com reported.

“What do I say about the person who tore my dreams away from me tore my future away from me tore my love away from me left me screaming alone in a parking structure bloodied?” his widow, Jamie Friedland, said prior to the sentencing.

Four men were eventually arrested and charged in connection with Friedland’s murder: Thompson; Karif Ford of Newark, Kevin Roberts of Newark, and Basim Henry of South Orange. Each of the men have since pleaded guilty to their respective roles in the shooting.

On Thursday, Ford and Roberts were sentenced to 20 years in New Jersey State Prison. Both must serve 17 years before they are eligible for parole. Roberts and Ford previously pleaded guilty to first-degree carjacking.

• See related article: Final 2 Short Hills Mall Murder Suspects Enter Guilty Pleas

Essex County prosecutors provided the following description of the events that led to Friedland's death:

"Newlyweds, the Friedlands had gone to the mall on Dec. 15, 2013 when the four defendants came to the mall looking for a car to steal. As Mr. Friedland helped his wife into their Range Rover and walked back to the driver's side of the vehicle, Thompson approached him and demanded his keys. A struggle ensued and Thompson shot Friedland."

Friedland – an attorney in Hoboken - was pronounced dead following the shooting at Morristown Medical Center. His wife wasn't injured but was also transported to the hospital following the incident, the Essex County Prosecutor's office stated.

REMEMBERING DUSTIN FRIEDLAND

Friedland's Facebook page said he was a graduate of Toms River North High School and a 2006 graduate of Bucknell University.

The Asbury Park Press reported that in 1999, Friedland was named Eagle Scout for Troop 29 in Toms River and in 2002, the 19-year-old Friedland posed as George Washington for an America's Day celebration at the Pine Beach Elementary School.

He competed in the N.J. Rowing Championship in 2001, and as a swimmer, placed third in the Toms River North-Brick Memorial 500-yard freestyle meet in 2000, according to reports. More recently, Friedland had been a member of the Hoboken Harriers Running Club.

Friedland, a 2009 grad of Syracuse Law School, was a project manager/estimator at Neptune-based Epic Mechanical Inc., according to his LinkedIn profile.

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Photo: Dustin Friedland, right, and wife Jamie Schare Friedland