A Bloomfield man was charged with the Oct. 18 murder of Jasper Howard police announced at 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday in a press conference at the UConn police station. Two other individuals were also arrested in connection with the crime.
John W. Lomax III, 21, of 28 Barry Circle, Bloomfield, was charged with Howard's murder and conspiracy to commit assault in the first degree (assault with a deadly weapon; both are felony charges). Lomax is being held on $2 million bond.
Hakim Muhammad, 20, a neighbor of Lomax who resides at 11 Barry Circle in Bloomfield, was arrested for conspiracy to commit first-degree assault. He is being held on $750,000 bond.
Both Muhammad and Lomax are set to appear at Rockville Superior Court today.
Jamal Todd, 21, of Hartford, was also arrested in connection with the case for pulling the fire alarm on the night of the murder. He was arrested for falsely reporting an incident, which is a felony charge, and for reckless endangerment, a misdemeanor. He was released on $5,000 bond and is set to appear at Rockville Superior Court on Nov. 10.
According to the UConn Phonebook, none of the men arrested yesterday are students at the university. Todd is an Eastern Connecticut State University student set to graduate in 2010, according to his Facebook page. There is no indication on Facebook that Todd was acquainted with either Muhammad or Lomax. It is unclear if the fire alarm that preceded the stabbing was directly connected, as police did not answer questions clarifying the charges on Tuesday.
According to Blicher, a task force of more than 40 investigators from the UConn and state police departments conducted more than 200 interviews over the course of the investigation, which has been ongoing since the night of the stabbing.
The arrest warrants in this case have been sealed, according to UConn police spokesman Major Ronald Blicher, and police did not answer any questions about them at the press conference.
The warrants were signed on Monday, the day of Howard's funeral, for the arrests in this case, according to Commissioner of Public Safety John A. Danaher III. UConn Police Chief Robert S. Hudd and Lt. Col. Steven Fields also spoke at the press conference.
"We've worked nonstop since the night of the stabbing and we've had tremendous cooperation from the Connecticut State Police, including the Connecticut police Major Crime Squad, with whom we would not have solved the crime without," Hudd said.
Danaher discussed the emotion that went into the investigation and the commitment the police had shown in bringing Howard's killer to justice.
"There is of course no system of justice than can bring back someone who has been taken from us, but we can do all in our power to investigate, arrest and assist the prosecution of those who have committed crimes such as this," Danaher said.
The police investigation is still considered to be "continuing" at this time, according to Blicher.
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