Four Men in Fatal Carjacking at Short Hills Mall Get Prison Time

The man who murdered Dustin Friedland during a deadly carjacking at The Mall at Short Hills was recently sentenced to 30 years in prison for the killing. The main defendant in the case, Hanif Thompson, was accused of firing a gun during a carjacking attempt and causing the victim’s death. According to the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, Thompson and three other men pistol-whipped Friedland on December 15, 2013 in a parking deck at the shopping mall in Millburn, NJ. At some point during the attack, Thompson shot and killed the victim. The suspects then left the scene in Friedland’s Range Rover. Friedland, a lawyer who lived in Hoboken, New Jersey, was later pronounced dead due to a gunshot wound to the head sustained in the assault.

Plea Deals for Suspects in Millburn Carjacking Murder

Police investigated the killing and later connected four men to the carjacking homicide. All four suspects were soon arrested and charged with multiple crimes: murder, felony murder, carjacking, conspiracy, and weapons offenses. Three of the men later accepted plea deals from Essex County prosecutors. At a recent sentencing hearing in Newark Superior Court, Jamie Schare Friedland, the widow of the victim in the carjacking, spoke and said that Thompson’s act destroyed her life. Friedland looked right at Thompson in court and said, “You tore my dreams away from me.”

Two other co-defendants in the criminal case were also sentenced to 20 years in New Jersey State Prison. Kevin Roberts and Karif Ford, Thompson’s accomplices in the carjacking, also reached plea agreements with Essex County prosecutors. Like Thompson, they were not sentenced to life in prison.

If Thompson, Roberts, or Ford had fought the charges and gone to trial, they would have faced life imprisonment. A fourth defendant in the case, South Orange resident Basim Henry, did not reach a plea deal with Essex County prosecutors. After a trial in Essex County Superior Court in Newark, Henry was convicted on all charges and subsequently sentenced to life in NJ State Prison plus 10 years.

Free Consultation with Experienced Millburn Criminal Attorney About Carjacking Charges

Have you been charged with carjacking, murder, or any other violent criminal offense in Millburn, New Jersey? Then you need to talk to a qualified criminal attorney about your situation and explore your legal options. Essex County criminal lawyer Travis Tormey represents clients in Essex County Superior Court and in municipal courts throughout Essex County, NJ. Contact Attorney Tormey today.