What to Know
- Two people from Florida have been detained in connection with a pair of homicides a quarter-century ago in New Jersey
- The body of Ana Mejia, 24, was found in December 1994 in the Long Branch apartment she shared with her young children
- The following year, her brother-in-law, Nicholas Connors, 51, was murdered in his Long Branch home
A 47-year-old man and a 66-year-old woman, both of Florida, have been detained pending jury trial in connection with a pair of homicides a quarter-century ago in New Jersey, prosecutors said Wednesday.
It wasn't immediately clear what charges the two -- Ted Connors and Dolores Morgan -- would face in the deaths of the Long Branch woman and her brother-in-law. Both were killed in the 1990s. Authorities said last month a third person had been taken into custody in the case in New Jersey, but there were no immediate new details on that individual Wednesday.
The body of Ana Mejia, 24, was found in December 1994 in the apartment she shared with her young children. The following year, her brother-in-law, Nicholas Connors, 51, was murdered in his Long Branch home. Prosecutors said the suspects will face charges in both slayings.
Authorities said at the time that Mejia, who also was referred to as Mejia-Jimenez, had been stabbed about 20 times, and the attacker also slashed her throat, smeared cocaine on her face and stuffed some of the drug inside her nose.
Nicholas Connors was shot to death months later inside his home. Police said two children, ages 14 and 13, were asleep inside the house at the time and didn't hear anything.
Authorities at the time said they suspected a connection between the slayings, since the victims were related, but declined to say if there were suspects in either case. The prosecutor's office last month praised the work of its cold case unit, which was formed in 2018, and said Long Branch and West Palm Beach, Florida police were involved.
