Police have found the pickup truck of a man accused of murdering his estranged wife.
State Police say they found the 1994 blue Chevrolet S10 pickup truck belonging to Jeremiah Monell, 32, on Saw Mill Road in Cedarville, New Jersey Tuesday. They searched inside the vehicle as well as Monell's Cedarville home but did not find him.
Monell is accused of stabbing his estranged wife, Tara O'Shea, inside her home on Raymond Drive in Commercial Township early Monday morning.
"About two, three o'clock in the morning I heard like a thump and that was it," said O'Shea's neighbor Mary Watson. "But we hear noises all the time out here."
Watson didn't think anything was going on until dozens of police officers rushed to O'Shea's home Monday morning. O'Shea was found unresponsive and unconscious at the home and was later pronounced dead. Police say their 12-year-old son and 4-year-old daughter were inside the home at the time of the stabbing. The children are currently in the custody of child protective services.
"He just had pure hatred in his heart to do something like this," said O'Shea's cousin Bryan Dunn. "Especially with the kids in the house."
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Investigators say Monell fled the scene in the same pickup truck that they later found Tuesday. They continue to search for Monell. He faces a murder charge and a related weapons possession charge.
"I'm not looking for you Jeremiah," Dunn said. "I want you to just do the right thing. For once. Man up."
"Tara was a great mother. She was great for her kids."
O'Shea's best friend Jen Messek told NBC10 if not for custody issues regarding the couple's pending divorce, Tara would have left New Jersey for good and moved to Tennessee.
"I didn't see the restraining order but she did have one," Messek said. "This is a tragedy. Not just for the family and the children but for the community."
If you have any information on his whereabouts, please call the New Jersey State Police Port Norris Station at 856-785-0036.
