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- Homicide suspect faces robbery charge
Published: August 22, 2012
KINGSTON - An Edwardsville man facing a criminal homicide charge for a shooting at a West Side apartment complex now faces a robbery charge because prosecutors allege the victim died during an attempted drug theft.
Magisterial District Judge Paul Roberts determined enough evidence was established for the robbery charge against 22-year-old George Lee Barnes following a preliminary hearing Tuesday that lasted about 2½ hours.
Barnes, who goes by the street name "Bomb," is charged with the May 16 shooting death of 26-year-old Daron Rhashawn Trollinger at the Eagle Ridge Apartments in Edwardsville. He remains jailed without bail in the Luzerne County Correctional Facility in Wilkes-Barre.
Attorney John Pike, who is defending Barnes with attorney Paul Galante, argued there was no evidence of a robbery.
Assistant District Attorney Molly Hanlon Mirabito argued that Barnes was armed with a handgun and Trollinger died at his hands during an attempted drug theft. Roberts agreed to forward the robbery and criminal homicide charges to Luzerne County Court.
During testimony, Jordan Remus said she and Corey Jones were negotiating a deal on May 16 to buy marijuana for Barnes in a stairwell at Eagle Ridge Apartments from Trollinger, whom she called "Budz." While negotiating the price, Remus testified Barnes entered the stairwell quickly and then she ran and heard four to five gunshots.
Remus said Barnes later returned to an apartment on Main Street in Edwardsville with blood on his shirt. She said he asked her to get rid of the jacket and she said it felt like there was a gun inside it.
Police alleged Barnes burst through a door at the Eagle Ridge Apartments with a black revolver when Trollinger said he was going to charge $650 for 2 ounces of marijuana. Defense attorneys argued that was a high price for marijuana. They also argued Barnes should not be charged with robbery because he had no marijuana on him and only a small amount of cash. The only one who possessed marijuana was Trollinger, they said.
Lead investigator state Trooper Robert Kennedy testified Trollinger was shot once in the chest while Barnes was shot twice, once in the chest and a graze wound to his head.
Luzerne County Acting Coroner Bill Lisman testified Trollinger was pronounced dead at 9:30 p.m. He was lying on his back with his arms at his side, Lisman testified. Forensic pathologist Dr. Gary Ross performed an autopsy the next day and determined the manner of death was homicide and the cause of death was a gunshot wound to the chest, Lisman said. He did not see a weapon near the body, he said.
According to the criminal complaint, police interviewed Barnes in the emergency room of Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center in Plains Township. He told police that a man held a gun to his head and said, "Give me your money." He also told police he reached for a gun with his right hand and it went off. He said he struggled with the gunman and the gun discharged again. He told police two gunshots were fired and "they were both at me."
U.S. marshals captured Barnes on May 25 in Philadelphia and state police brought him back to the area. According to police, detectives found a .22-caliber revolver wrapped in Barnes' jacket inside a kitchen sink cabinet.
Barnes claimed to have been shot by a semi-automatic handgun. Police said there were no bullet casings where Trollinger's body was found, suggesting the shooter used a revolver.
May 18, 2012
EDWARDSVILLE - Authorities on Thursday identified the man shot to death the night before in Edwardsville as Daron Rhasha Trollinger.
Trollinger, 26, suffered the fatal injury in a suspected drug-related shooting that also seriously injured George Lee Barnes, 22, outside Building 6 of the Eagle Ridge Apartments on Lawrence Street at about 8 p.m. Wednesday.
The manner of death was ruled a homicide. No one has been charged with the shootings.
The Luzerne County Coroner's Office determined Trollinger died from a gunshot wound to the chest. Trollinger was pronounced dead at the scene by Acting Coroner William Lisman at 9:30 p.m.
Barnes was found in a rear yard of 573 Main St., near the athletic fields on High Street and about 150 yards from the apartment complex. He was listed in stable condition Thursday afternoon at a local hospital, state police at Wyoming said.
Trollinger, originally from Copiague, Long Island, N.Y., last resided on Roosevelt Street in Edwardsville.
Barnes, of Elizabeth, N.J., has resided in the area for several years, according to court records, and was said to be living in the 500 block of Main Street.
State police returned to the rear yard of 573 Main St. on Thursday morning.
Several people in the neighborhood have been questioned, including a woman who was escorted by a trooper to the Wyoming barracks.
A motive remains unknown, but investigators said the shootings appear drug related from what they have learned.
A woman in the apartment complex who declined to give her name said a trooper asked her if she had knowledge that Barnes and Trollinger were involved in drug trafficking.
Barnes was released from the county prison on March 20, when his bail was modified on criminal conspiracy charges and firearm and drug offenses, according to court records.
Wilkes-Barre police charged Barnes with conspiring to steal a 2002 Lincoln LS at Dana Street and Park Avenue on Dec. 22.
Edwardsville police on Dec. 23 pursued the stolen Lincoln on Route 11 until it crashed in an area known as Boston Hill in Larksville.
Barnes was a passenger in the Lincoln and allegedly assaulted three police officers after the crash. During the fight, a pack of cigarettes allegedly containing crack cocaine fell from Barnes? pocket, according to arrest records.
A .40-caliber handgun under Barnes? seat in the Lincoln was reported stolen in Easton, arrest records say.
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call state police at Wyoming at 697-2000.
Read More http://www.timesleader.com/stories/Edwardsville-shooting-victims-IDd,152113#ixzz22apGjcaM
EDWARDSVILLE - An arrest warrant was issued for George Lee Barnes late Tuesday afternoon, charging him with the killing of another man at an apartment complex last week.
Barnes, 22, of Main Street, Edwardsville, is being sought on a criminal homicide charge, state police at Wyoming said.
State police investigated the deadly shooting at Eagle Ridge inside Building 6 on Lawrence Street, where they found Daron Rhasha Trollinger, 26, behind the apartment building with a gunshot wound to the chest. He was pronounced dead at the scene by Luzerne County Acting Coroner William Lisman.
According to affidavit of probable cause filed with the charges, state police investigators spoke with Barnes in Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center's emergency room, where he was treated for a gunshot wound. Since then, his whereabouts are unknown.
State police believe gunfire erupted during a marijuana purchase in the Eagle Ridge apartment building.
According to the criminal complaint charging Barnes with criminal homicide:
A witness to the shooting told investigators that Barnes and two other people walked to the apartment building to meet Trollinger to buy marijuana. Barnes stayed outside while Trollinger and the two other people, who are not identified in the criminal complaint, walked into the building near a rear exit door. Trollinger told the two people he was dropping the price to $650.
Barnes rushed through the door brandishing a revolver and confronting Trollinger. The two people in the building ran outside and across an athletic field, hearing gunshots as they were running, the criminal complaint says.
Police said the glass rear exit door was smashed and bullet fragments were found in a stairwell. No shell casings were found, indicating to police that a revolver was used.
The two unidentified people ran to Barnes? apartment. Several minutes later, Barnes walked into his apartment saying he was shot, according to the criminal complaint.
He told investigators he walked to Eagle Ridge to visit a friend when he stated a Hispanic man shoved a handgun against his head. Barnes said he struggled over the handgun, which fired twice.
Investigators said they recovered a 22-caliber revolver wrapped in a jacket hidden in a kitchen sink cabinet and a bloody T-shirt inside Barnes? apartment, the criminal complaint says.
Barnes is known by his street name ?Bomb,? and has ties to Wilkes-Barre. He is originally from Elizabeth, N.J., and has lived in the area for several years.
Barnes was released from the county correctional facility on March 20 when his bail on unrelated charges was modified at a preliminary hearing.
Anyone with information about the whereabouts of Barnes is asked to call state police at Wyoming at 697-2000.
UPDATED 11:12 a.m.
Pennsylvania State Police in Wyoming have identified the second man involved in a shooting Wednesday evening.
George Lee Barnes, 22, of Edwardsville, is in stable condition with a gunshot wound, according to a release issued Thursday by state police.
Earlier Thursday, police said 26-year-old Daron Rhasha Trollinger, also of Edwardsville, was killed in the incident at Eagle Ridge Apartments.
Anyone with information is asked to call state police at (570) 697-2000.
POSTED 9:21 a.m.
EDWARDSVILLE - An autopsy is underway Thursday morning on the body of a 26-year-old man who died from a gunshot wound Wednesday night.
The Luzerne County Coroner's Office identified the man as Daron Rhashawn Trollinger, of Edwardsville.
A court record listed Trollinger's address as Copiague, N.Y.
Trollinger was found at about 8 p.m. near building 6 of the Eagle Ridge Apartments on Lawrence Street. Acting Coroner Bill Lisman pronounced Trollinger dead at 9:30 p.m.
Forensic pathologist Dr. Gary Ross is conducting the autopsy at Wilkes-Barre General Hospital.
Another person was injured in a shooting at the apartment complex.
Details about the investigation have not been released.
WILKES-BARRE - A grieving grandmother thinks an Edwardsville housing complex shares responsibility in her grandson's murder.
And she's taking the owners to court for it.
But Margie Bloome, who has produced filings without the help of an attorney since June, recognized after a hearing Monday that she might need a little more help.
"I can't do all of that and mourn, too," she told the Times Leader.
Bloome, of Long Island, New York, lost her 26-year-old grandson Daron Rhashawn Trollinger, of Edwardsville, in a May 2012 shooting at Eagle Ridge apartments. Police said the shooting was the result of a marijuana deal gone bad.
Another Edwardsville man, George Lee Barnes, is serving a 15- to 30-year prison sentence after admitting in December 2013 to pulling the trigger.
With her grandson's admitted killer behind bars, Bloome said she felt - as the administrator of Trollinger's estate - Eagle Ridge should be held accountable as well.
She alleges that management was aware of ongoing illegal activity on the property and, in spite of this, negligently allowed lax security practices. For example, Bloome said, surveillance cameras on the premises don't work, and doors to some apartment buildings don't lock.
Conversationally, Bloome rattles off details of the case with ease. But in the concise format of a legal document, she's meeting difficulties expressing her allegations.
As Judge Tina Polachek Gartley gently informed Bloome inside a Luzerne County Courtroom on Monday, her complaint simply does not meet the requirements outlined by state Rules of Civil Procedure. The facts of her case are not where they need to be.
However, Gartley did express appreciation for the amount of "leg work" Bloome has sunk into the case and allowed her 30 more days to amend her complaint.
The judge granted the objections set forth by Laura Danks, an attorney for Eagle Ridge operator Silver Street Development Corporation. In her written objections, Danks indicates that Bloome's complaint, as Gartley agreed, fails to meet legal standards.
After the hearing, Bloome told reporters she soon will be seeking the help of the civil rights organization National Action Network.
The current language of Bloome's suit seeks $5 billion in damages.
Bloome also filed notice of her intent to sue Hilltop Apartments in Edwardsville in connection with what she alleges was a theft of Trollinger's identity. According to Bloome, someone at the apartment complex made a call requesting a replacement debit card in her grandson's name approximately five hours after he was killed.
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1986 - 2012 (26 years)
