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Yusuf Ibrahim, 29, shot Egyptian nationals Hany Tawadros, 25, and 27-year-old Amgad Konds once each in the chest with a .38-caliber handgun inside Konds’ white Mercedes C280 after abducting them in the early morning hours of Feb. 5, 2013, the indictment handed up in Trenton says.
He then got behind the wheel and drove the bodies to Buena Vista, NJ, where he took their money and jewelry, cut off their heads and hands using a small drywall saw and scissors and knocked out their teeth with a tire iron, it says.
Ibrahim buried the remains on a relative’s unoccupied property, the indictment alleges. After staying overnight at the house there, it says, drove the car to Philadelphia, set it afire and abandoned it.
“These were vicious, cold-blooded murders in which Ibrahim allegedly executed his victims, decapitated them and bashed out their teeth with a tire iron in an attempt to avoid detection,” Acting Attorney General John J. Hoffman said this afternoon.
“This indictment is another step in securing justice for the victims, whose young lives were ended in such a brutal fashion,” Hoffman added.
Acting on a tip, detectives from the State Police Troop A Criminal Investigation Office went to the Atlantic County house and obtained permission to search the wooded area behind it.
A cadaver dog found an area of disturbed dirt near the end of a trail extending from the backyard.
They got a search warrant and the next day dug up both bodies.
The cadaver dog found the heads and hands buried about 40 yards away. Nearby were the drywall saw, scissors and tire iron.
New Jersey State Police and the U.S. Marshals Service arrested Ibrahim in on Feb. 10, 2013 in Bayonne. Bail was set at more than $3.5 million.
Last month, Ibrahim was indicted in connection with a separate armed robbery that occurred the night of Sept. 19, 2012 in Jersey City. Authorities said he shot a man in the foot with a handgun and pistol-whipped him while taking the victim’s money and cellphone.
Ibrahim also is charged with a December 2011 carjacking and armed robbery, also in Jersey City.
The Division of Criminal Justice obtained a 16-count indictment in the recent case charging Ibrahim with two counts each of murder, (1st degree), felony murder (1st degree), kidnapping (1st degree), robbery (1st degree), and desecrating human remains (2nd degree), in addition to various other crimes related to the murders and mutilation of the bodies.
The indictment stems from an investigation by the New Jersey State Police, the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office and the state Division of Criminal Justice.
Deputy Attorneys General Vincent J. Militello, Philip J. Mogavero and Jamie Picard coordinated the investigation for the Division of Criminal Justice Gangs & Organized Crime Bureau and secured the indictments.
Detective Sgt. Glenn Garrels and Detective John Hannigan led the investigation for the State Police Major Crime Unit.
Hoffman thanked the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office, U.S. Marshals Service, Philadelphia Police and Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office for their valuable assistance.
PHOTO: Courtesy Nj.com
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