Woman Allegedly Caught on Camera Dismembering Murder Victim’s Body
A court document that was recently released has disclosed alarming information regarding a series of crimes that culminated in a standoff at a residence in New Jersey earlier this month. Among the revelations is that a woman was involved in the act of photographing a man’s dismembered cadaver.
The Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office announced on July 13 that Elizabeth C. Mascarelli, 29, was charged with offenses such as desecration of human remains and hindering apprehension. Mascarelli is purportedly responsible for assisting Maxwell Johnston, 35, in concealing himself within the residence in Toms River, New Jersey, where she resided, for an extended period following the murder of his fiancée, Gabriella Caroleo, 25.
Mascarelli, along with three alleged accomplices: Danielle Bolstad, 42, Jared Krysiak, 34, and Jarred Palumbo, 36, was apprehended following a police siege on July 5. Authorities reported that Johnston committed suicide before being apprehended.
The remains of another individual, 56-year-old Kerry Rollason, were discovered in a separate home in Jackson by authorities as they investigated Caroleo’s murder. Rollason was the owner of the home in which Johnson was hiding. Rollason’s corpse had been dismembered and placed in bags.
According to the recently released arrest affidavit, photographs of Mascarelli and Johnston standing next to a “clearly deceased” Rollason, whose legs had been amputated, were discovered during a forensic examination of her phone. According to the affidavit, the photograph depicts Mascarelli holding a hatchet in the body’s torso.
Additional images discovered during the search depict Mascarelli, Johnston, and Bolstad in a wooded area. According to the affidavit, Johnston is depicted holding a substantial ax, and an “active” fire barrel is visible behind him. An indeterminate object with potential bloodstains is visible protruding from the barrel.
According to the affidavit, Palumbo informed detectives that he was in the cellar of Rollason’s residence with Krysiak on July 3 when he heard three gunshots emanating from the exterior. Soon after, Johnston entered the basement and informed the two individuals that they must promptly vacate the premises.
Palumbo observed Rollason’s death upon exiting the cellar, as indicated by the affidavit. The residence was purportedly evacuated by Krysiak, Palumbo, Bolstad, Mascarelli, and Johnston, who allegedly returned shortly thereafter to attend to the deceased.
According to the affidavit, Palumbo stated that Johnston, Mascarelli, and Krysiaki severed Rollason’s limbs and subsequently requested that he retrieve “several bags” from the cellar and transport them to Bolstad’s vehicle.
As per the affidavit, Rollason’s body was dismembered into eight distinct parts, as reported by the medical examiner. Multiple gunshot wounds and blunt force trauma were the causes of his demise.
The affidavit cites phone data that indicates Bolstad traveled to the vicinity of a residence in Jackson, New Jersey, on the day of Rollason’s death. According to the affidavit, authorities who searched the residence discovered a fire barrel close to the property and gloves that resembled those worn by Mascarelli and Johnston in the photographs. A dagger was concealed within the barrel, which was soiled with human blood.
According to the Huffpost, a search of the vicinity yielded many body parts that were wrapped in blankets and stored in black bags, as well as several 9mm rounds, a saw, and the hatchet that Mascarelli was observed wielding in the photographs.
Prosecutors stated at a hearing on Wednesday that Johnston was a member of the Bloods street gang, but they did not provide a specific reason for her alleged involvement in Rollason’s death. Bolstad’s public defender contended that she was in the wrong location at the wrong time, while Mascarelli said she had a history of addiction and was afraid of Johnson.