[0:07]You're supposed to be the safest with the people that you've known the longest. The ones who grew up in your home, the ones your parents trusted. The ones who've been there since elementary school. Jason Sweeney certainly believed that. He was 16, working full-time, planning his future, and bringing his first real girlfriend home to meet his parents the next day. But instead, he walked into the woods with the people he trusted and never walked out. What happened to Jason wasn't random. It wasn't a stranger and it wasn't sudden. It was betrayal.
[0:46]Jason Sweeney grew up in Fishtown, Philadelphia. His dad used to joke that their family was like the Beatles. Four of them, always together. Jason worked for his family's construction business and made $500 a week, and he soon planned to join the Navy. He wasn't a reckless guy. He wasn't spiraling. He had direction, and maybe that's what made him different. Because while Jason was building a future, some of the people around him were quietly destroying theirs. And the resentment didn't happen overnight, it started in elementary school. One thing to know about Jason is that he had several friend groups. He was friends with the smart kids, the quiet kids, the loud kids, and the troublemakers. Jason was just that kind of person. He was never easily influenced by anyone or anything and his primary goal was just to become a Navy SEAL. But someone he trusted the most was determined to make sure that never happened.
[1:49]Jason's best friend since elementary school was a boy by the name of Edward, or Eddie, Bat Zigg, Jr. The two were really close and some would say they were basically joined to the hip. To give you an idea of how close Jason and Eddie were, their families also knew each other to the point where Eddie's family would invite and pay for Jason to accompany his best friend on trips, and Jason's family would do the same for Eddie. According to Jason's sister, Melissa, Eddie was a staple in the Sweeney household. He would stop by the house to play with Jason, have dinner with the Sweeneys, and hang out with them basically all day, every day. Aside from Eddie, Jason was also friends with two brothers, Nicholas and Domenic Coia. Dominic was a year older than Jason and Eddie, but the four hung out a lot. Now, the thing with Nicholas and Domenic was that they were loners. They were raised by a single dad and the two brothers would always be together. And the two would always be on their own on the outskirts of town, but still nothing alarming or anything that screamed bad kid behavior, at least not initially. Jason, Eddie, and the Coia brothers remained friends until high school, but that was when that shift started to occur. And for some reason, Eddie was spiraling out of control, and he became a magnet for troublemaking. He spent more time in the presence of police than he did in his own school. And I'm not completely sure what he was up to and why he was constantly in trouble, but if he had to go to court hearings all the time, then it must have been serious to some extent. So, in their high school era, Jason, Eddie, and the Coia brothers weren't as close anymore. So it wasn't long before they lost touch and their friendship kind of ended. In the meantime, Jason had plans for his own life. His family ran a construction business. And 16-year-old Jason decided to leave school at the beginning of 2003 and worked for that family business. Well, after leaving high school and becoming a full-time employee at the construction business, Jason did reconnect with Eddie and the Coia brothers. But he was heartbroken and disappointed to see that his former friends weren't the same anymore. See, Eddie was already going down a dark path, but now he'd made a home there with Nicholas and Domenic. Jason's core, ride or die group, who were only 16 or 17, were now heavily involved in hardcore substance and alcohol abuse. This was such a punch in the gut for Jason to hear. Now, Jason seldom used any sort of substances. The furthest he ever went was smoking. But what these three boys were doing was something that both Jason and his family were not comfortable or okay with. Neither Jason's parents nor Jason wanted to see the young boy spiral like that. Jason tried to talk his friends into quitting these habits and getting their lives back on track, but this caused even more tension in the group. Eddie, Nicholas, and Domenic were basically just angry at Jason for trying to correct them, and Jason was just helpless against them. Basically, from Jason's perspective, he wanted his old friends back. He genuinely wanted Eddie and the Coia brothers to get their lives together. They were all fast approaching adulthood, and they didn't have any solid plans for the future, whereas Jason did. He had a job, he made 500 bucks a week and he was making plans of enlisting in the Navy. From the trio's perspective, though, you could sense there was some jealousy, some resentment, and a lot of anger. The trio was jealous of Jason having his life on track despite having left high school early. Things were looking up for Jason. He could clearly see the stark difference between him and the trio. And if you ask me, this could have been them too if they only hadn't derailed their lives like that. Alcohol and substance abuse, it's terrible, but with a rock solid support system, you can overcome anything, truly. But Eddie and Nicholas and Domenic were in no hurry to do such a thing. They liked the risk, they liked the parties, and they enjoyed that lifestyle. But like it or not, Jason was about to be roped into this mess one way or the other, especially when Eddie, Nick, and Domenic introduced Jason to someone who would change his life forever.
[5:54]From the outside, Jason had it all, a great job, a great future, all of it. But the one thing he didn't have was true love. That is, until 15-year-old Justina Morley came into the picture. But there's a lot to unpack about Justina. See, when she was just 10 years old, she was exposed to the dark world of substances. This was not a great start to her life, obviously. According to her mom, she went through episodes of self-harm, and at one point in 2002, she was admitted into Friends Hospital for these issues. Now, this was likely a great move on her mom's part. She was trying her best to get her daughter the help that she needed. But Justina hated every second of it. She all but threatened her mom to discharge her from that hospital, even though the doctors strongly advised against it. And in the end, Justina rejected the help that she desperately needed, and her mom was left with no choice but to discharge her, despite the doctor's advice to let her get treated. From there on out, things only got worse. She wrote poems with deeply dark and disturbing themes. She was expelled from school in the eighth grade, and she continued to abuse substances of all kinds. She would attend parties, get her hands on her poison of choice by any means, and she was free falling into a deep, dark hole, very similar to what Eddie, Nicholas, and Domenic were also experiencing. So this was the girl who was introduced to Jason, and right away, Jason fell head over heels for Justina. Jason had never really been in a relationship with anyone before Justina. And to him, she was the one for him, and Jason was very much in love. They hung out for about a week, and that was when Jason decided to invite her to his parents' home, and to meet his parents, and everything. Jason's parents and sister, Melissa, were very excited to see Jason having heart eyes for a girl. They were very interested to meet this mystery girl Jason couldn't stop thinking or talking about. So the date for the meeting with Jason's parents was set for May 31st of 2003. It was a Saturday, and Jason would bring Justina to meet his parents, particularly his mom, since the two were very close, and all would hopefully go well. But well, isn't the word that I or anyone would use to explain what went down after this. Because just a day before Jason was due to bring his girlfriend to his house, he went missing.
[8:14]Normally, Jason's routine went something like this: He'd wake up, he'd eat breakfast, he'd go to work, and if he didn't have any plans, like meeting up with a friend or going somewhere, he'd be back by that evening. It was like clockwork. Jason was very good about leaving and arriving home on time. So, when Jason didn't come back home after work on the evening of May 30th, his parents were kind of taken aback. But they weren't all that worried. His parents thought that maybe he was just going through a teenage streak of breaking curfew, seeing if he could get away with it, you know, things like that. But the Sweeney family began worrying when it was almost night time and there was still no sign of Jason. Melissa called Jason's workplace and his phone, but he wasn't answering, which was extremely uncommon for him. Where was he? The Sweeney family tried to come up with every logical reason for Jason's silence, but when Monday morning came, they couldn't wait any longer. They went to the police and they reported 16-year-old Jason Sweeney missing on June the 2nd. So the police came and they took the report and asked about Jason's description and what he was wearing, the usual questions. When Jason's mom described what he was wearing the day that he was last seen, the officer looked up at her with a very weird expression on his face. It was this mix of fear, surprise, and maybe something else. But what was going on? Well, to find out, I've got to take you back just a bit. Back to the day that Jason was supposed to introduce Justina to his parents, May 31st of 2003. Basically, on this day, locals had called the police to notify them about something they'd found at the trails. This was a wooded and remote area of Fishtown near the Delaware River. The trails was about a mile away from Jason's home. So the police went out to investigate, and they immediately came across an injured and deceased body. The severity of the injuries proved to be a hindrance for the police, as they couldn't figure out the age of this person. By the looks of it, the male appeared to be in his 30s or 40s, and he had no form of identification on him. He was only wearing a St. Jude's necklace, and he had a cut on his palm. He was wearing a dark-colored T-shirt and jeans. This male, John Doe, was taken away to the medical examiner's office, and since there were no recent missing person reports, there wasn't a whole lot the police could do for right now. That was until Jason went missing. The police were left gobsmacked at the odds. The John Doe found in the trails was wearing the same clothes as Jason the day that he disappeared. But John Doe was in his 30s to 40s, and Jason was just 16. But still, the police called the Sweeney family in to identify the body. Jason's parents' worst nightmare became true. The John Doe lying lifeless in that medical examiner's office was none other than their own son. He was identified by that St. Jude necklace, which was given to him by his grandmother. Jason's family couldn't believe this. Who could have done this to him, and why?
[11:21]Now that the police had identified Jason, they knew that someone was behind the attack. It was a very frenzied attack. It was a crime of passion, no doubt about that. Jason didn't just trip and fall in the remote area where he was found, he was attacked. So the police talked to Jason's parents about the people that he hung out with, and any particular and peculiar information that would be helpful to the case, and obviously, if he had any bad blood with someone. The police eventually found out about Jason's friends, Eddie, Nicholas, and Domenic, and his new girlfriend, Justina. They were the last people to have been known to have interacted with Jason. Even though Jason wasn't as close with the trio anymore, he did hang out with them from time to time. And since Justina entered the picture, seeing the trio was kind of inevitable at that point, since they'd be at the same gatherings. So first, the trio, Eddie, Nicholas, and Domenic were called in, and they were all questioned separately. Eddie was questioned by one officer, whereas the Coia brothers were questioned by another. But they didn't know where Jason was. According to them, they were at a party at a friend's house on the day that Jason went missing. And in fact, they were waiting for Jason, but he never showed up. That was it for the questioning. But there was still one person who could recount the details of the day when Jason had gone missing, and that was his girlfriend, Justina Morley. She was his girlfriend and if anyone knew where Jason was at the time of his disappearance, well, it should be his girlfriend, right? So Justina was called into the police station for a round of questioning. And initially, she gave the same story as the rest of the boys, but she couldn't keep up the ruse for too long. The words that came out of Justina's mouth and what she proceeded to tell the police couldn't have been more chilling. In the end, Justina's statement became the missing puzzle piece in this mystery. Justina basically confessed to the police about how she, Eddie, and the Coia brothers were involved in Jason's attack and his subsequent passing. This was a haunting revelation. These were the four people who Jason was closest with. How could they be the ones behind his passing? Were the police really supposed to believe that a bunch of teenagers had targeted their friend like this? And to make things even worse, it was actually Justina who lured Jason into that very place where he was eventually found deceased. So, what happened on that fateful day? Well, according to Justina, the attack was planned way before it was set into motion. And what was even worse was that this wasn't the first time that they had thought about this. Their original plan was to lure Jason to the South Jersey Shore and attack him after he withdrew some money from an ATM. But that didn't work out for some reason. Then the group thought that Jason's home was the best place to carry out the attack, but again, something happened and the plan was put on hold. Finally, it was decided that the day before Justina was about to meet Jason's family, she would lure Jason to a remote place with the promise of a good time and the friends would be hiding, ready to jump at the perfect moment. Now, Jason was really attracted to Justina. So this was a dream come true for him. He was quick to say yes and he didn't have any reason to be apprehensive. He thought the two were truly in love. It was Justina, his girlfriend, the girl that he had a huge crush on and was only a day away from introducing to his family. But Jason couldn't expect that he was walking straight into a trap, and it was set up by none other than the girl that he loved and the people he called his friends. As soon as Justina lured Jason deep within that wooded area, Eddie, Nicholas, and Domenic came out of hiding and almost immediately, they launched an attack. Jason tried to save himself. He tried pleading, and he tried to make them stop, but in the end, he was unsuccessful. And tragically, Jason Sweeney, who was only 16, lost his life at the hands of the people with whom he'd been close friends with for his whole life. After the attack, the trio and Justina went through Jason's pockets and stole his paycheck for the week, $500, some gum, and some other things. An attack that led to Jason losing his life was for a $500 paycheck. This was all the group wanted. They just wanted his money. And need I remind you, these are a bunch of kids, actual children, teenagers. Well, after their successful money heist, the group celebrated with a group hug and left the scene as if they hadn't literally murdered their closest childhood friend. They disposed of the weapons, the soiled clothes, and all the other evidence in nearby places. Then they just split the money among themselves. According to Justina, everyone was unaffected, happy even. Like they just won the lottery. So, what did they do with all this money? Well, they spent it on partying, drinks, and other random stuff along the same line. They literally went partying after committing murder. This is, this is mind-blowing. If this doesn't illustrate the depths people will go to fuel their addictions, then nothing will. But after Justina's confession, the police honestly needed a second to just get a hold of themselves.
[16:28]They didn't expect the questioning to take such a dark turn so quickly. And what surprised the investigators even more was how detached Justina was. Her expression was cold, nonchalant, and you would think that she was just talking about the weather or something boring to her. Well, the police were left shocked. Melissa, Jason's sister, was likely shocked more than anyone else, as she'd also been pretty close with these boys growing up. But this, well, the investigators now had their guys, but they needed to dig more. Would the boys be as cooperative as Justina? Well, surprisingly, they were. One by one, Eddie, Nicholas, and Domenic spilled everything about how they participated in Jason's attack and what part did each person played. Domenic confessed that in the days leading up to the attack, the group was listening to the infamous Beatle's song Helter Skelter for over 40 times, supposedly. Also, this is just a side note, but there were also four attackers, the Beatles also had four members, and if you remember, Melissa said that their family was lovingly called the Beatles by her and Jason's dad because they also were a group of four people. The parallels are heartbreaking, scary, and bizarre, all at the same time. Now, you would think that the group's confession would be enough to indict them for murder, but oddly enough, it wasn't. The police needed something permanent. Something that could be argued with to successfully take this group of teens to court and punish them. As much as the investigators didn't want to do it, they had to strike a deal with one of the murderers, and they chose none other than Justina Morley. If she pleaded guilty to third-degree murder and testified against the rest of the group at the trial, she'd be given a lighter sentence. Justina happily took that deal. It was a bitter pill for everyone, but the state had to do what they had to do. And it was decided to try the whole group as adults for obvious reasons. Well, Eddie and the Coia brothers were eventually charged with first-degree murder, conspiracy, robbery, and possessing an instrument of crime. The trial for Eddie, Nicholas, and Domenic was held on February 28th of 2005 and as promised, Justina testified against them. The prosecution also managed to find the weapons that were used to attack Jason, as well as DNA evidence on some of the recovered items of clothing from the perpetrators. The trial lasted for just two weeks, and at every hearing, Jason's family was in the front row, just reliving the pain that their son and brother went through.
[18:56]In no time, the jury deliberated, and the verdict for the trio was guilty. They were found guilty on all charges, and in May of 2005, Edward, Nicholas, and Domenic were sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole for the murder of Jason Sweeney, as well as an additional 22 and a half to 45 years for conspiracy, robbery, and possessing an instrument of crime. It was clear as day, they were never getting out of prison until the last day of their lives. But the fight was far from over. Justina's sentencing was still pending. Because of the plea deal and holding up her end of the bargain, Justina was sentenced to only 17 and a half to 35 years in prison. All of them showed little to no remorse. They were not the least bit sorry for taking Jason's life. Well, after 15 years had passed, in December of 2020, Justina Morley was released on parole from prison. She was just as involved in Jason's attack as any other person in the group, and the fact that it's been five years since she was released is unbelievable. We don't really know where she is or what she's doing now, but Jason's family, as well as everyone who was involved in this case, they're kind of in disbelief. Jason's family can still feel that void that was left after their son's sudden passing.
[21:08]It's something that they can never forget for as long as they live. They lost Jason so suddenly and inexplicably, and it's a wound that will always hurt no matter how much time passes. I think Psalm 55 gives a very deep insight into cases like this. When David says, it's not an enemy who taunts me, I could bear that, but it's you, a man like myself, my companion, my close friend. David too was referring to the deep betrayal of a close friend. A trial on its own is hard enough, but when it comes from someone so close, even scripture recognizes how deep those cuts can really go. But we can't forget how Psalm 55 ends, with David concluding by saying, but I called to God and the Lord will save me. He finally adds, cast your burdens on the Lord and he will sustain you. He will never permit the righteous to be shaken.
