Homeowner Kills Basement Tenant, 33, Trying To Force Way Into House: Prosecutor

By Cecilia Levine From Daily Voice

The man killed overnight in Lodi was trying to break into the home he lived in when he was shot by someone inside, authorities said.

Amr Ali, 33, was a tenant living in the basement of the Girabaldi home, and was trying to force his way through the front door using a spear-type object around 11 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 3, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said.

After that failed, Ali attempted to break in through a window, the prosecutor said.

At that time, the 62-year-old homeowner, who was inside the home with two other family members, confronted Ali and “ultimately fired three shots at him, striking him once,” according to Musella.

Responding to multiple 9-1-1 calls about shots fired, Lodi police officers arrived to find Ali unresponsive with an apparent gunshot wound, the prosecutor said. He was taken to Hackensack University Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

The investigation is ongoing and being led by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, under Chief Matthew Finck, and the Lodi Police Department, under Chief Donald Scorzetti.

No charges have been announced. No additional information was immediately released.