Oct 26, 2009 6:15 pm US/Pacific
Officials: Priest Was Stabbed 32 Times
New Jersey State Police Investigating Disconnected 911 Call Moments Before Priest's Grisly Murder
CHATHAM, N.J. (CBS) ―
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Father Edward Hinds was murdered inside St. Patrick's Church in Chatham, N.J. on Oct. 23, 2009. He was 61.
CBS
The investigation into a New Jersey priest's murder has turned to his frantic cell phone call to 9-1-1 as he was being attacked, allegedly by a janitor at the church, CBS station WCBS-TV reports.
The call went to a New Jersey State Police dispatch center, but suddenly disconnected. The dispatcher apparently called back twice – once getting voicemail, the second time getting the alleged killer - who said there was no emergency, according to prosecutors.
By law, police have to be dispatched on a hang-up call. It gets complicated when the call comes from a cell because sometimes a location can't be pinpointed, but reports indicate police tracked janitor Jose Feliciano through the cell to his home.
It is unclear why police weren't sent to the church until the next day, when Hind's body was found. Prosecutors Hinds was stabbed 32 times and that Feliciano is a murderer.
"Jose was a very nice man. It's a complete shock to hear this," said Carlos Thom, Feliciano's neighbor.
"It is a terrible tragedy, the amount of times he was struck," one parishioner said.
Friends said Feliciano's daughter attends the church's Catholic school and his son graduated from it. The interim priest said parishioners are praying for Hinds and Feliciano, who prosecutors said may have been losing his job.
"People are banding together in prayer and love," said Father Moran.
While prosecutors said they're looking at Feliciano's employment at the school as a possible motive, they also say they're investigating other potential motives. Feliciano may have been losing his job.
Feliciano remains in custody at an undisclosed hospital, but investigators won't say what's wrong with him.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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