A Connecticut man has been found guilty in the 2021 kidnapping and murder of a Massachusetts man, officials said.
Timothy Lange, 36, of New Britain, has been found guilty by a jury in Tolland Superior Court on Thursday of my second-degree kidnapping, felony murder, and tampering with evidence, according to the Connecticut Division of Criminal Justice.
Evidence presented at trial showed that Lange and murder victim, Jason Comes, 28, of Massachusetts, were at an East Windsor bar early on Aug. 4, 2021. Surveillance cameras showed Lange arriving with four men, and later Comes’ car leaving the bar behind Lange’s motorcycle. Comes’ car, Lange’s pickup driven by another man, and a fourth car followed the motorcycle through Enfield. Officials say all three then continued to an address on Moody Road.
About six minutes earlier, another vehicle had entered that address. About 90 minutes later, two vehicles were seen leaving the property and heading east toward Somers, where cameras captured them traveling toward Durkee Road, according to officials.
On Aug. 5, 2021, the owner of a plot of land located on Durkee Road contacted police stating that he found a car parked in a field on his property. The police arrived and found Comes lying unresponsive on the rear seat with a gunshot wound to his torso. His feet were bound with tape, and a belt was wrapped around his left wrist. Paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene, according to the CT Division of Criminal Justice.
At approximately 4:30 a.m. on Aug. 5, 2021, the Woodbridge Volunteer Fire department was dispatched to 50 Woodfield Rd. for a vehicle fire. The Woodbridge Fire Marshal and the Woodbridge Police Department identified the vehicle as Lange’s pickup, the same truck that was seen on the cameras driving in the early morning hours of Aug. 4, 2021. Investigators found DNA evidence on the victim’s clothing linking the defendant to the kidnapping and subsequent death of the victim.
After announcing the guilty verdict, Lange’s bond was increased to $3.5 million, according to officials. He is being held on bond while awaiting sentencing scheduled for May 29, at the Tolland Superior Courthouse in Rockville.
Stephen Underwood can be reached at [email protected]