Burlington County Prosecutor Scott Coffina and Willingboro Township Public Safety Director Kinamo Lomon announced that a 29-year-old township resident has been charged with fatally shooting a man earlier this month in the Millbrook Park neighborhood.
Officials say Mr. Kwacey Q. Owens, of the first block of Echo Lane, was charged with Murder (First Degree), Possession of a Weapon for an Unlawful Purpose (Second Degree), and Unlawful Possession of a Weapon (Second Degree). He was served with the warrant yesterday in the Burlington County Jail in Mount Holly, where he has been held since being arrested last week on a weapons charge related to this case.
According to Burlington County officials, on October 8, Willingboro Township police officers were called to the first block of Maplewick Lane just after 1:30 a.m. for a report of a shooting.
Upon arrival, they found the body of Mr. Barry Barino, 28, outside the rear door of his home. He was pronounced dead at the scene by the Burlington County Medical Examiner’s Office.
An autopsy performed by Burlington County Medical Examiner Dr. Ian Hood ruled the death was caused by a gunshot wound to the head.
The investigation revealed that Barino and Owens were acquaintances and that Owens had been inside the victim’s home a short time earlier before luring him outside to shoot him.
The motive for the killing remains under investigation.
The weapon believed to be used in the shooting, a .45 caliber pistol, was recovered inside Owens’s residence.
The investigation was conducted by detectives from the Willingboro Township Police Department and the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office. The lead investigators are Willingboro Detective Elijah Hart, BCPO Major Crimes Unit Detective Tony Luyber and BCPO High-Tech Crimes Unit Detective Kevin Sobotka.
All persons are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.