New Jersey

Mom Found Guilty of Murder in Son's 1991 Disappearance

The mother's arrest came after a cold-case review helped launch a new investigation

A woman whose son's body was found after she said he disappeared at a New Jersey carnival 25 years ago has been found guilty of killing the 5-year-old. 

Michelle Lodzinski, formerly of Perth Amboy, was found guilty of first-degree murder Wednesday morning in the death of Timothy Wiltsey, who Lodzinski said went missing while they were at a carnival in Sayreville on May 25, 1991.

She later changed her story and said that Timothy had been kidnapped.

Timothy's body was found in a marshy, remote part of an industrial park in Edison nearly a year later, on April, 23, 1992. 

Gasps were heard in the packed courtroom as the verdict was read. It followed several weeks of testimony.

Lodzinski did not speak, but her brother Michael Lodzinski told reporters later, "She was crying and shaking. I feel for her, I do. I love her. I'm sorry it had to happen this way." 

But he added, "I think what was right was done, and Timothy did get justice."

"He's a great little boy and this should never happened to him," he said. 

Michelle Lodzinski was quickly handcuffed and led away after the vedict. She faces sentencing in August,  although her lawyer is expected to appeal. 

First-degree murder is punishable by 30 years to life in prison in New Jersey.

Lodzinski was arrested in 2014 in Florida, where she was living, and had denied any role in her son's disappearance or killing. 

The mother's arrest came after a cold-case review helped launch a new investigation.

The Middlesex County prosecutor at the time of Tomothy’s disappearance said following Lodzinski's 2014 arrest that he wasn’t surprised and detectives had never stopped working the case.

"We didn't have sufficient evidence at the time to pull the trigger," Alan Rockoff previously told The Associated Press. "There was no direct smoking gun here."

Michael Lodzinski said he'd asked his sister several times over the years what happened to his nephew, "and I got nothing from her." 

"We're devastated by this, right from the beginning it was a no-win situation for the family," he said. 

When Michelle Lodzinski was led out of court, he shouted to her, "I love you, sis, very, very much." 

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