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DNA Breakthrough Leads to Charges in 2016 Browns Mills Home-Invasion Killing

Enhanced DNA testing on gloves recovered in 2016 produced matches that moved the long-stalled case toward grand-jury review.

Overview

  • Burlington County prosecutors charged Kevin D’Costa, 45, and Daemen Hodge, 32, with first-degree felony murder, robbery and multiple weapons offenses in the killing of Norman Mosley.
  • Laboratory analysis using improved forensic methods linked both men’s DNA to gloves recovered near the scene, bolstering evidence preserved since 2016.
  • D’Costa was served with a homicide warrant while held on unrelated charges at the Essex County Correctional Facility, and Hodge was arrested in Bordentown Township and is jailed in Burlington County.
  • The investigation spanned years and involved the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office, Pemberton Township Police, the New Jersey State Police Office of Forensic Sciences and the U.S. Marshals Service.
  • Prosecutors will present the case to a grand jury, highlighting next steps in a prosecution that Mosley’s family helped sustain through ongoing contact and annual vigils.