An Atlantic City man accused of killing his former girlfriend inside the apartment they once shared will be held in jail until his trial, a judge ruled Wednesday.
Joseph McCoy's concern with "who's been snitching" and flight out of state showed he should not be released, Superior Court Judge Patricia Wild said.
Jacqueline Hoyle, 24, was found bleeding and unconscious in the front area of her one-bedroom apartment in the 300 block of North Tennessee Avenue at about 4:30 a.m. Dec. 20.
But her former boyfriend, McCoy, allegedly called police more than an hour earlier, telling them there had been a robbery and shooting in the area, Assistant Prosecutor Rick McKelvey told the judge during Wednesday's hearing.
Police checked the area, but found nothing, unaware that, inside her apartment Hoyle was mortally wounded and under a mattress.
There had been a fight over the mattress it seems, McKelvey explained.
McCoy — who goes by Abdul Salaam — then tried to get a ride out of town, which GPS on his phone shows he did. It first places him in Philadelphia, then in North Carolina, where he was found weeks later.
It took more than two months more for Salaam to end up in the Atlantic County Justice Facility, after he fought extradition from North Carolina. It was a governor's order that finally brought him home, Wild noted.
Under the new bail reform, which took effect in January, release is based on an assessment that includes the defendant's likelihood of committing another crime and of flight.
Wild said Salaam already obstructed justice by leaving the state and then refusing to waive extradition back home.
His court-appointed attorney, Joe Swift, said that Salaam is eager to clear his name after being accused of killing the woman he called his wife.
While out of state, Salaam allegedly called people back home trying to find out who had ratted him out, McKelvey said, adding that it verged on witness tampering, although that is not among the charges Salaam faces.
The judge agreed that witness safety could be a factor if Salaam were released considering he was "overly concerned about who snitched on him and who is a rat."
Salaam will continue to be held in the Atlantic County Justice Facility pending trial.
