A man from South Jersey was convicted Thursday of fatally stabbing a friend and his dog during a 2022 robbery attempt in a Burlington County apartment, authorities said.
The investigation began the morning of Feb. 5, 2022, when officers from the Evesham Township Police Department were called to the Olympus Apartments on Baker Boulevard for a report of a possible dog attack on a resident, according to a release from the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office. When officers arrived, they discovered Thomas Pierson III, 26, of Evesham, dead inside his apartment with multiple stab wounds.
Pierson’s dog, a Cane Corso named Django, was found dead — also with stab wounds — on a stairwell landing, the prosecutor’s office said.
Detectives determined that Donovan G. Hollingsworth, 26, of Evesham, had traveled to Pierson’s apartment with the intention of robbing him, investigators said. An altercation ensued, during which Hollingsworth stabbed Pierson and Django.
Hollingsworth fled and was later taken into custody by officers at the emergency room of Virtua Voorhees Hospital, where he had gone for treatment of minor injuries, officials said. He has been held in the Burlington County Jail since his arrest.
On Thursday, after just over an hour of deliberations, a jury found Hollingsworth guilty of murder, robbery, cruelty to animals and two weapons-related offenses, the office said. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 27.
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Chris Sheldon may be reached at csheldon@njadvancemedia.com.