4 charged in Franklinville, NJ murder

FRANKLINVILLE, N.J. - April 5, 2013

The victim, 54-year-old John McConnell, was found dead by his brother on Monday night inside his home on Main Road.

Police day McConnell's hands and feet had been bound with duct tape and zip ties. Police say he had been beaten in the head and neck and eventually suffocated.

The suspects have been identified as:

Jon O. Nordberg, 40, of Strawberry Avenue in Vineland, N.J. Bail was set at $1.5 million.

David J. Buss, 33, of Union Road in Glassboro, N.J. Bail was set at $1 million.

Valerie G. Niessner, 47, of Salina Road in Sewell, N.J. Bail was set at $750,000.

Amanda C. Rickerd, 18, of Sherwood Place in Mantua, N.J. Bail was set at $750,000.

Police say Nordberg was a friend of the victim, Niessner is Nordberg's girlfriend, Rickerd is Niessner's niece and Buss is a friend of Nordberg.

According to the Gloucester County Prosecutor's Office, a search warrant was executed at Nordberg's home and two cars believed to have been used in the crime were seized.

Also, an underwater diving team was able to recover a safe taken from the McConnell home in a Vineland-area lake.

All four have been charged with murder, robbery, burglary, aggravated assault and criminal restraint.

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