Memorial candles and balloons line the sidewalk leading to the Lippincott Avenue home where Joan Colbert and her foster daughter, Veronica Roach, lived. Long Branch resident Brian Farmer, who was charged last week with the murders of his cousin and her 10- year-old foster daughter, faces life in prison if convicted of the charges against him.
Farmer allegedly killed the two after his cousin found him photographing the child while forcing her to perform sex acts, authorities said.
Farmer, 58, of 104 John St., stood silently in front of Superior Court Judge Honora O’Brien Kilgallen Aug. 13 as she read the charges against him: two counts of first-degree murder for causing the deaths of his cousin, Joan Colbert, 62, and her foster daughter, Veronica Roach, at their home on Lippincott Avenue on Aug. 1.
According to a spokesman for the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, the murder charges have been referred to a grand jury.
Farmer is also facing one count of firstdegree endangering the welfare of a child, one count of second-degree endangering the welfare of a child and two counts of thirddegree endangering the welfare of a child. “Detectives discovered pornographic pictures of the 10-year-old victim on Farmer’s cellular phone, prompting the child endangerment charges,” a press release from the prosecutor’s office states.
Farmer, who was represented by a public defender during the brief court appearance, is being held in the Monmouth County jail, Freehold Township, on $2.5 million cash-only bail.
Long Branch police discovered the bodies after responding to the home around 5:22 p.m. Aug. 1 following a report of suspicious circumstances at the address. The prosecutor’s office and Long Branch Police Department then launched a joint investigation.
According to the prosecutor’s office, the investigation revealed that Farmer was at Colbert’s home on July 30, where she discovered him taking pornographic photographs of Veronica.
“A confrontation ensued, ending with Farmer killing Colbert and the girl,” the press release states. Farmer then fled the scene. An autopsy performed by Middlesex County Assistant Medical Examiner Dr. Diane Karluk found that both victims died as the result of strangulation, according to the prosecutor’s office.
Farmer was previously charged in 1996 in connection with an aggravated sexual assault on a 15-year-old female, according to the New Jersey State Police Sex Offender Internet Registry. The website stated that Farmer engaged in a sexual act with the juvenile while armed with a knife, confined the minor and her mother over a three-day period and burned the house down after they escaped.
Anyone with additional information about the homicide case is urged to call Detective Richard Chapman of the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office at 732-577- 8700 or Detective Ross Zotti of the Long Branch Police Department at 732-222- 1000.
If convicted of both charges of first-degree murder, Farmer would face a state prison sentence of life without the possibility of parole.
Farmer faces a state prison sentence of 10 to 20 years on the first-degree charge of endangering the welfare of a child, and five to 10 years on the second-degree charge for the same offense. On each of the third-degree charges of endangering the welfare of a child, Farmer faces a state prison sentence of three to five years.