Man Charged With Murder After Victim Found Dead In Franklin Lakes Home

BERGEN COUNTY, NJ — After a person was found dead at a home in Franklin Lakes on Sunday morning, a man has been taken into custody and charged with his murder, prosecutors said Sunday evening.

David Allen Hagal, 60, was charged with the killing of George J. Hagal, 87, at their home some time that morning, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said that on Sunday at approximately 7:33 a.m., the Franklin Lakes Police Department was notified of a person found dead at 552 Haddon Place. The address is a home on a wooded residential street in the town.

Officers from the Franklin Lakes Police Department responded to the home to find Hagal, 87, deceased.

Detectives from the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit and the Franklin Lakes Police Department investigated and determined that in the early morning hours, David Allen Hagal, who lives at the Haddon Place address, had killed the elder Hagal.

He was charged with first-degree murder, two counts of third-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, and two counts of fourth-degree unlawful possession of a weapon.

While prosecutors did not state the relationship between the two men, records indicate that the elder Hagal had recently owned the home, and that the victim's wife had passed away this year.

Prosecutor Mark Musella thanked the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office and the Franklin Lakes Police Department for their assistance.