Gloucester County Prosecutor Charles Fiore announces that a petit jury sitting in Woodbury, NJ, on May 14, 2019, found John Blocker, 46, of Philadelphia, PA, guilty after a jury trial on an Indictment charging numerous criminal offenses arising from a 2006 home invasion which resulted in the death of Juan Cuevas Sr., 36, at his residence in Washington Township.
Officials say Blocker was found guilty of felony murder, aggravated manslaughter, robbery, burglary and three counts of kidnapping.
Officials say Juan Cuevas Sr. was brutally and fatally attacked after returning home from his business in Philadelphia, G.I. June’s Auto Parts. Four assailants, including Blocker, had arrived at the residence earlier, forcing entry, restraining, harming and intimidating three of Cuevas’ children in an attempt to locate cash they believed to be present in the house.
With those efforts unsuccessful, the assailants confronted Cuevas Sr. when he arrived home from his business later in the day, beating, torturing and ultimately murdering him according to officials.
“Prosecutor Fiore commends all those from multiple law enforcement agencies who were involved in this investigation over the past thirteen (13) years.
The investigation, spanning New Jersey and Philadelphia, leveraged exceptional crime scene and forensics work, as well as relentless efforts by investigators who did not allow jurisdictional boundaries, geography and the passage of time to slow or impede their efforts.”