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There were a few other employees in the G&M Wholesale Florist building when Thomas Battinelli, 52, of Ridgefield, came up behind Murphy and shot him point-blank Wednesday morning, Molinelli told CLIFFVIEW PILOT.
A delivery man for the business found Murphy’s body around 10 a.m. “He literally ran across Midland Avenue to Garfield Police headquarters across the street,” the prosecutor said.
Thomas BattinelliDetectives recovered the murder weapon at Battinelli’s home, he said.
“Murphy brought Battanelli into the business years ago, and he rose up through the ranks,” Molinelli told CLIFFVIEW PILOT. “Instead of getting stabbed in the back, he takes a bullet in the head.”
Battanelli owns 16 percent of the business, the prosecutor noted.
“Apparently, there was a business dispute,” Molinelli told CLIFFVIEW PILOT. “Exactly what it was over was hard to tell…. “It’s very hard to say what happened.”
Battanelli is being held on $1 million cash bail at the Bergen County Jail. Charges include murder, unlawful weapons possession and hindering apprehension “from false statements Battinelli made to detectives and his tampering with evidence at the scene,” the prosecutor said.
Battinelli’s first court appearance is scheduled for tomorrow afternoon in Hackensack.
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