NJ - Carolyn Byington, 26, killed inside her home, Plainsboro, 10 June 2019 *Arrest*

[DMA19]

@DAB thank you for reaching out to the mayor to get a more official response.

Off topic we received an email yesterday from the leasing office celebrating national sugar cookie day, with an attached PDF that said "Cookies make everything better." I personally feel that is a bit tone deaf considering what has been happening here over the past month. I really feel like the case has gone cold and there is an attempt to just move on with things as normal which is very unrealistic. I want to suggest a candle light vigil or some other community based remembrance of Carolyn and her family but I don't know if that's a good idea considering we have no idea what happened and the status of the murderer.

 

[Seahorse03]

Hi all, I live less than a mile from Carolyn's apartment and have been reading all of your comments over the past week but haven't had anything to add myself. I took note of the comment about the black Range Rover and last night, my family was at the playground at a nearby elementary school. There was a black Range Rover in the parking lot and after awhile we realized it did not belong to anyone using the playground. The Range Rover left shortly before us and my husband took note of the license plate.

I called the Plainsboro Police last night to give them the plate number and explain what I had read about the black Range Rover. I said that the community was grasping at straws because we had no information and were on edge. They looked up the license plate and saw that it belonged to a 42 yo female living at Hunters Glen and were not concerned by that. The dispatcher I spoke with also said that they had no information about the case, that the county was handling it now.

My husband and I were then talking about the case and I have two possibilities:

1. A neighbor- therefore there was no car coming or going and no one odd in the complex.
2. Maintenance person. In my experience from living in a complex just like this, maintenance is usually around in the morning picking up trash, etc and you get to know one another casually. In particular there was one maintenance man that I saw frequently, and I would in passing mention things that we needed help with or a repair that wasn't working. What if Carolyn saw a maintenance person in the morning on her way to work, mentioned something that needed repairing, and he set a time to meet her later? Then there would be no formal record of the request and no phone records as to what was calling her home.

Again, just my opinion based on my experience living in the community. Thanks for all the information you have shared, and I'm happy to share anything else I can help with.

 

[bears10]

Black range rovers are super common, especially in NY and NJ. (In my experience)

 

[ilovechili]

Hi all, I live less than a mile from Carolyn's apartment and have been reading all of your comments over the past week but haven't had anything to add myself. I took note of the comment about the black Range Rover and last night, my family was at the playground at a nearby elementary school. There was a black Range Rover in the parking lot and after awhile we realized it did not belong to anyone using the playground. The Range Rover left shortly before us and my husband took note of the license plate.

I called the Plainsboro Police last night to give them the plate number and explain what I had read about the black Range Rover. I said that the community was grasping at straws because we had no information and were on edge. They looked up the license plate and saw that it belonged to a 42 yo female living at Hunters Glen and were not concerned by that. The dispatcher I spoke with also said that they had no information about the case, that the county was handling it now.

My husband and I were then talking about the case and I have two possibilities:

1. A neighbor- therefore there was no car coming or going and no one odd in the complex.
2. Maintenance person. In my experience from living in a complex just like this, maintenance is usually around in the morning picking up trash, etc and you get to know one another casually. In particular there was one maintenance man that I saw frequently, and I would in passing mention things that we needed help with or a repair that wasn't working. What if Carolyn saw a maintenance person in the morning on her way to work, mentioned something that needed repairing, and he set a time to meet her later? Then there would be no formal record of the request and no phone records as to what was calling her home.

Again, just my opinion based on my experience living in the community. Thanks for all the information you have shared, and I'm happy to share anything else I can help with.

Interesting. I have a few questions. The first is, is the apartment complex in the city or county as far as jurisdiction of case handling? I am just wondering if they could mean the city has finished their investigation and now it is with the county DA? In which case, there could be an arrest or a review for an arrest going on? I would think if it is in the city, the city PD would be handling it as to investigation. Or are they just letting the county investigate rather than the city?

Second question, so the parking lot at the school playground was not a Hunter's Glen parking lot but the vehicle came back to someone who lived at Hunter's Glen? How close was it?

You said you saw the vehicle leave and that it was not there in relation to the playground, where did the person come from on leaving or what appeared to be the purpose for parking there and was it a woman?

I think your running into maintenance in the morning thought is a good one. A neighbor also is certainly a possibility imo.

I think it is great that you told them people are on edge with no information.

Jmo.

 

[Seahorse03]

Interesting. I have a few questions. The first is, is the apartment complex in the city or county as far as jurisdiction of case handling? I am just wondering if they could mean the city has finished their investigation and now it is with the county DA? In which case, there could be an arrest or a review for an arrest going on? I would think if it is in the city, the city PD would be handling it as to investigation. Or are they just letting the county investigate rather than the city?

Second question, so the parking lot at the school playground was not a Hunter's Glen parking lot but the vehicle came back to someone who lived at Hunter's Glen? How close was it?

You said you saw the vehicle leave and that it was not there in relation to the playground, where did the person come from on leaving or what appeared to be the purpose for parking there and was it a woman?

I think your running into maintenance in the morning thought is a good one. A neighbor also is certainly a possibility imo.

I think it is great that you told them people are on edge with no information.

Jmo.

The township police released a statement a few weeks ago saying that the county's prosecutor's office would be taking over the case.

The school is about 1.5 miles from the apartment complex- they are not connected at all. We had children with us so we were distracted and were lucky to be able to get the license plate unfortunately.

 

[ilovechili]

The township police released a statement a few weeks ago saying that the county's prosecutor's office would be taking over the case.

The school is about 1.5 miles from the apartment complex- they are not connected at all. We had children with us so we were distracted and were lucky to be able to get the license plate unfortunately.

Thank you, appreciate the response.

I probably saw the statement about the county taking over but forgot being it is not the only case I follow and this one is quiet.

I still find it interesting with the school then that the vehicle did come back to that apartment complex. I am not saying it could not happen but it could have come back to someone at any other residence address. It may mean nothing but it is interesting.

She can correct me if wrong but I thought the other local poster said the Land Rover somewhat stood out at the apartment complex as not typical and was not one she had ever noticed before. Now this one comes back to the same complex. Again, it could be nothing, just something, at least for me, to keep in the back of the mind.

Jmo.

 

[scdiv]

I remember in the nj.com article very early on, the Middlesex County Prosecutor's office said there would be no public statements. They must have some idea on the reason she was lured home that day at lunch. For some reason, they have kept this close to the vest from the start. I tend to think if they needed more leads, there would be more statements released. The police and family are keeping this all very quiet. But it just kind of struck me that they said from the very onset that there would be no public statements. And yet, there hasn't been any arrests or developments reported. It's truly a strange case in terms of how little attention or info is available.

Just a recap from the "sources" in that initial article -
- did not regularly go home for lunch
- drawn home for unknown reason and attacked once inside
- found with personal belongings
- no forced entry
- her lunch break and failure to return to work is why coworkers called police
- The reason she went home is one theory being pursued by investigators from the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office

previous article: Killer was waiting at apartment for 26-year-old woman murdered on her lunch break, sources say

 

[nyc2015]

Good point and I think this possibility could well be worth pursuing.

Expanding this possibility further, could the victim of purchased a big piece of furniture from somebody, and then arranged via the internet for a third party to actually deliver the item?

I wonder if some vending sites also have lists of independent delivery contractors. Or, if there is a separate "Mov'in" site featuring delivery contractors? Such a contractor would not have a recognizable truck.


It might depend on how much furniture, what kind of furniture was involved and whether or not there was a formal delivery truck.

For example, a love seat, small to medium sized dressers (best to take the drawers out first) and some tables could probably be picked up or dropped off relatively quickly by a single male of average or above fitness.

Unless someone were in the stairwell, or in the doorway, neighbors might not notice such an individual. Perhaps he was in the process of picking up a sold item when he saw that the victim was attractive and alone?

One would think, but at the same time, there might be a lot of 'Craigslist' type sites to go through. For example, the site 'Offer Up' has been associated with problems in my city. In addition, not all these sites may keep record of who contacted who, thus making possible contacts more difficult to trace back.

There is also the possibility of say, older detectives having varying degrees of knowledge and personal interaction regarding the vast and constantly changing on line / social media universe. Thus, they might not know of all sites or contact possibilities.

I think police departments need to have a designated officer(s) with in depth experience in the on line universe as "go to" references for certain cases. It would be even better if the FBI or state police offered courses regarding this universe to local officers with pre existing expertise.

Thanks. Yes, I guess I shouldn't assume LE has already confirmed all of her modes of communication and ruled out an on-line purchase where the 'seller' dropped the item off to her. I'm not familiar with the sites in your site you mentioned that have caused problems. I guess someone could have set up a fake account and perhaps they are having trouble tracing it back. It was the one thing I thought of after reading she was 'lured back'.

 

[nyc2015]

i agree I feel like it's up to us to look out for each other. I feel very strongly that something like this shouldn't happen in this type of community. I'm sure her neighbors who were home feel some level of guilt over not being able to help her or provide more information but you never know how you will act in this situation until you're in it. You also don't want to be that person who over reacts and has the cops called on a neighbor who was watching a scary movie or having a non violent argument with a significant other. Because of how transient the apartment complex is it's very difficult to establish that sense of community here but we all need to be more vigilant in looking out for each other.

On a slightly unrelated note I had a friend who was killed in a hit and run by a drunk driver. It took almost 2 months but they just caught the person and are starting the court process so sometimes it does take awhile but there's still hope that Carolyn can get justice.

DMA - I am very sorry to hear of the loss of your friend. I remember 2 hit and run cases in the area where for the first month it seemed they could not at all find who did it, but later on it both cases they did. That gives me hope.
I must say even though there is much wonderful work sometimes with the NYPD and my in-laws are pretty much all on the force, I still can't help but think back to 17 years ago when I was in my 20s in the city and a victim of a crime and let's just say the actual work the police did on my own case was let's just say beyond pathetic. Still, I really do like to think though they are going to find who did this. Her family needs answers. I am glad the local police in NJ have federal assistance with their investigation.

 

[nyc2015]

Hi all, I live less than a mile from Carolyn's apartment and have been reading all of your comments over the past week but haven't had anything to add myself. I took note of the comment about the black Range Rover and last night, my family was at the playground at a nearby elementary school. There was a black Range Rover in the parking lot and after awhile we realized it did not belong to anyone using the playground. The Range Rover left shortly before us and my husband took note of the license plate.

I called the Plainsboro Police last night to give them the plate number and explain what I had read about the black Range Rover. I said that the community was grasping at straws because we had no information and were on edge. They looked up the license plate and saw that it belonged to a 42 yo female living at Hunters Glen and were not concerned by that. The dispatcher I spoke with also said that they had no information about the case, that the county was handling it now.

My husband and I were then talking about the case and I have two possibilities:

1. A neighbor- therefore there was no car coming or going and no one odd in the complex.
2. Maintenance person. In my experience from living in a complex just like this, maintenance is usually around in the morning picking up trash, etc and you get to know one another casually. In particular there was one maintenance man that I saw frequently, and I would in passing mention things that we needed help with or a repair that wasn't working. What if Carolyn saw a maintenance person in the morning on her way to work, mentioned something that needed repairing, and he set a time to meet her later? Then there would be no formal record of the request and no phone records as to what was calling her home.

Again, just my opinion based on my experience living in the community. Thanks for all the information you have shared, and I'm happy to share anything else I can help with.

Seahorse- great job getting the plate number to the police and getting an answer from them! Interesting it was registered to a HGlen resident. I wonder if that person lives in an apartment near Carolyn's, so that would explain the other member here seeing a black RR near Carolyn's car in the parking lot.

Great theory on Carolyn running into a Maintenance worker and asking him/her in person to fix whatever it is. I should have thought of that myself as years of living in a big high-rise, sometimes I would just talk to them when I saw them around as well!

Neighbor/maint. worker/someone without a car really would be least noticed by neighbors.

I also wonder how LE came to the conclusion in earlier reports that killer was 'waiting for her' and she was 'lured there'. Do they assume that since neighbors saw her come home from work that day and walk alone from her car to her apartment, and then heard the noise/screaming without ever noticing anyone else go to her apartment before her?

 

[scdiv]

I also wonder how LE came to the conclusion in earlier reports that killer was 'waiting for her' and she was 'lured there'. Do they assume that since neighbors saw her come home from work that day and walk alone from her car to her apartment, and then heard the noise/screaming without ever noticing anyone else go to her apartment before her?

Maybe they have some digital messages? I'm thinking there has to be some digital trail via a message or phone call, but apparently not enough to trace the person. But, total just imo and speculation. I guess one big thing we don't know is did she expect a person to be inside or not? Was she ambushed? Or was she aware that someone would be in her apartment, but not afraid - except it was a lure/false pretense and they attacked?

 

[MissyMom]

I think we need to be cautious about contacting the police about Range Rover sightings. As DAB and Bears10 mentioned there are a lot of Range Rovers in the surrounding Princeton area and the detective told me to contact him if I saw the Range Rover back in Carolyn’s parking lot. I check every day and it has not been back.

 

[MissyMom]

@DAB thank you for reaching out to the mayor to get a more official response.

Off topic we received an email yesterday from the leasing office celebrating national sugar cookie day, with an attached PDF that said "Cookies make everything better." I personally feel that is a bit tone deaf considering what has been happening here over the past month. I really feel like the case has gone cold and there is an attempt to just move on with things as normal which is very unrealistic. I want to suggest a candle light vigil or some other community based remembrance of Carolyn and her family but I don't know if that's a good idea considering we have no idea what happened and the status of the murderer.

I thought the same thing when I saw the email about the sugar cookies. Very poor taste.

 

[MissyMom]

Thank you, appreciate the response.

I probably saw the statement about the county taking over but forgot being it is not the only case I follow and this one is quiet.

I still find it interesting with the school then that the vehicle did come back to that apartment complex. I am not saying it could not happen but it could have come back to someone at any other residence address. It may mean nothing but it is interesting.

She can correct me if wrong but I thought the other local poster said the Land Rover somewhat stood out at the apartment complex as not typical and was not one she had ever noticed before. Now this one comes back to the same complex. Again, it could be nothing, just something, at least for me, to keep in the back of the mind.

Jmo.

There are many Range Rovers in the Princeton area, just not many in this complex. That doesn’t mean there couldn’t be a couple, it’s a very large development with many parking lots. However, I never saw one in Carolyn’s parking lot except for the week surrounding her death. But as I said, it could have been someone picking somebody up or dropping them off.

 

[DAB]

@DAB thank you for reaching out to the mayor to get a more official response.

Off topic we received an email yesterday from the leasing office celebrating national sugar cookie day, with an attached PDF that said "Cookies make everything better." I personally feel that is a bit tone deaf considering what has been happening here over the past month. I really feel like the case has gone cold and there is an attempt to just move on with things as normal which is very unrealistic. I want to suggest a candle light vigil or some other community based remembrance of Carolyn and her family but I don't know if that's a good idea considering we have no idea what happened and the status of the murderer.

I agree it totally overlooks the importance of an unsolved murder at the complex. I get the feeling that the township also doesn’t want to say anything.

If you want to organize a vigil or rememberance I would be willing to help.

 

[DMA19]

It's not been over a month since Carolyn was murdered on June 10th and we still have no answers. Most articles on this are from June 12th and the most recent article I can find is from June 28th and that just references the FBI getting involved with the case. We know that this is being handled at the county level and not locally anymore but that's about it.

 

[cluciano63]

OT:

There was a man found murdered at my apartment complex on Wednesday morning, just outside the office. Since then, there was one brief news bit, and nothing else, i.e we don’t know if he was a resident, or if a possible suspect might be one. Just a bland statement that it is not believed the community is in danger. Not sure how they can say that, if it is true, as they claim, that they have not identified him. Police were all over the complex on Wednesday, walking theough the courtyards etc, at one point with a number of young men toward one of the buildings near mine.

Anyway...just saying they must know more than they are telling us, imo. Management has said nothing at all. In fact I just got an email announcing that the pool is finally open...

 

[DAB]

OT:

There was a man found murdered at my apartment complex on Wednesday morning, just outside the office. Since then, there was one brief news bit, and nothing else, i.e we don’t know if he was a resident, or if a possible suspect might be one. Just a bland statement that it is not believed the community is in danger. Not sure how they can say that, if it is true, as they claim, that they have not identified him. Police were all over the complex on Wednesday, walking theough the courtyards etc, at one point with a number of young men toward one of the buildings near mine.

Anyway...just saying they must know more than they are telling us, imo. Management has said nothing at all. In fact I just got an email announcing that the pool is finally open...

What city and state did this take place in? I don’t know why the police & apartment management don’t feel that they owe the community more information.

 

[TexLil]

It's not been over a month since Carolyn was murdered on June 10th and we still have no answers. Most articles on this are from June 12th and the most recent article I can find is from June 28th and that just references the FBI getting involved with the case. We know that this is being handled at the county level and not locally anymore but that's about it.

Agreed! I'm surprised at how little coverage this murder is receiving and how little we really know. I would think if the murderer was someone Carolyn knew, was texting with, was dating then he would have been arrested by now or at least be named POI and we'd know he was being questioned. Since that hasn't happened I can't help but think this was random. And that's really scary. MOO

 

[Seattle1]

Agreed! I'm surprised at how little coverage this murder is receiving and how little we really know. I would think if the murderer was someone Carolyn knew, was texting with, was dating then he would have been arrested by now or at least be named POI and we'd know he was being questioned. Since that hasn't happened I can't help but think this was random. And that's really scary. MOO

I believe CB was the target, and LE are building their case around somebody specific -- hence the silence not to apprise the suspect.

If this was random, there would be the duty to protect the community, and reporters would be pounding on doors for details.

MOO