Staff Reports
Two mid-August murders in the Town of Tonawanda bred fear in neighborhoods for months after, landing at number seven on the Tonawanda News’ list of top stories in 2009.
The first victim, Thomas Newton, 32, of 137 Henderson Ave., was shot in front of the home rented by his girlfriend shortly before 9 p.m. Aug. 14. Newton’s girlfriend and her daughter were both home at the time of the shooting.
The following day, as town residents were trying to make sense of the murder, Michael Santiago was shot while walking down Burns Court near his mother’s home in Sheridan Parkside. While town police worked to assure residents that the two murders were unrelated, questions continued to swirl in the usually quiet suburban community.
Newton’s accused killer was captured quickly. Town police arrested Michael A. Campanella, 21, on Sept. 2 and charged him with second-degree murder. While there was an argument going on outside just before the murder, police contend that Campanella and Newton didn’t know one another.
Santiago’s case took decidedly longer. Tensions mounted in the Sheridan Parkside neighborhood and a makeshift memorial constructed the day after Santiago’s death became a focal point for the strain. Threats that circulated among different groups caused police to step up their presence in the area for weeks afterward.
As the frenzy subsided, Santiago’s family and friends worked vigorously to ensure the slaying didn’t go on the police department’s back burner. Santiago’s mother Lori Coones and friend Mark Patti became vocal spokesmen, appearing at every town board meeting and lobbying leaders for a memorial park. That park will be built in the Sheridan Parkside neighborhood where Santiago was killed, dedicated to all of the town resident lost in tragic circumstances.
After months of work, Town of Tonawanda investigators charged Jose L. Latorre, 19, with Santiago’s murder. Latorre was found in custody in Lorain, Ohio, about 20 miles west of Cleveland, where he was arrested in November for robbery. His motive has still not been made clear by police. Court proceedings are set to begin in early 2010.
