Door-to-door Solicitor Kills Jackson, NJ Resident, Cops Say

JACKSON — A solicitor contracted by Verizon for door-to-door sales stabbed a man to death during a confrontation in the street early Thursday evening.

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Michael Tsamas, 32, of the Laurence Harbor section of Old Bridge, knocked on the door of Joseph Delgardio's home on West Veterans Highway near Conor Road in Jackson around 6:15 p.m. Delgardio told Tsamas he was not interested and Tsamas left the property, according to Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer.

A short time later Delgardio, 44, confronted the solicitor in the street and began to fight. Tsamas pulled a knife from his pocket and fatally stabbed the resident in the neck, according to Billhimer.

Billhimer did not disclose what led to the confrontation between Delgardio and Tsamas.

Tsamas was taken into custody without incident and charged with first-degree murder, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and unlawful possession of a weapon. He is being held at the Ocean County Jail pending a detention hearing.