A Pleasantville man accused in a fatal carjacking the day after he allegedly attacked his girlfriend with a gun was ordered held in both cases Thursday.
Police were called to the 900 block of North Main Street at 9:19 a.m. and found 41-year-old Ivan Smith fatally wounded.
The day before, Wharton allegedly struck a woman in the face with a handgun and strangled her. A Pleasantville police detective learned of the assault Nov. 24. Wharton was arrested Dec. 15.
He was charged in the killing while in the Atlantic County Justice Facility.
But Wharton claimed in court Thursday that he had been in custody in Cumberland County since Nov. 13, and given no court hearing.
“It makes sense that this is all happening now,” he told the judge via video from the Atlantic County jail. “All the illegal activity and manipulation of dates is to fit some timeline that just isn’t true.”
Wharton claimed he was “kidnapped with no charges.”
But the two assistant prosecutors assigned to the separate cases painted a much different picture, pointing to four pending charges Wharton already had, which Assistant Prosecutor Megan Moore said she believed did not include a hindering charge Wharton incurred last month.
Surveillance footage allegedly shows Wharton attempting to unsuccessfully break into one vehicle before approaching Smith and his vehicle. A short time later, there are gunshots.
Smith was left on the street to die, Superior Court Judge Dorothy Garrabrant said.
The day before, Wharton allegedly struck his girlfriend in the face with a handgun and strangled her, according to the Pleasantville police report.
He will now remain jailed as his case goes through the courts.
