29-Year-Old Man Will Die In State Prison For The Brutal Beating Death Of A Highland Park Man

Thursday, August 22, 2024, 8:20 A.M. ET. 2 Minute Read, By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,

BEVERLY CITY, NJ.- On Tuesday, August 20, 2024, a 29-year-old Burlington Township, New Jersey, man learned that he would die in prison after he was sentenced to 90 years in New Jersey State Prison for the brutal 2022 baseball bat beating death of a Highland Park man and 7-hour standoff with Police that occurred in June 2022 in Beverly City, New Jersey.

     According to Burlington County Prosecutor LaChia L. Bradshaw, on Tuesday, Larry Brown, 29, of Burlington Township, New Jersey,  appeared in Burlington County Superior Court and was sentenced by Superior Court Judge Gerard H. Breland to 90 years in State Prison. The judge ordered that Brown serve 73 years before becoming eligible for parole.

Jury Convicts

     In March 2024, a jury sitting in Burlington County, New Jersey, convicted Brown of the beating death and additional charges related to the standoff with police for barricading himself inside the residence with a woman and four children.

     After deliberating for several hours over three days, the jury found Brown guilty of the charges of first-degree Murder; five counts of first-degree Kidnapping; second-degree Unlawful Possession of a Handgun; third-degree Endangering the Welfare of a Child; third-degree Possession of a Weapon for an Unlawful Purpose; third-degree Certain Persons Not to Have Weapons; third-degree Terroristic Threats; and fourth-degree Unlawful Possession of a Weapon.

     The conviction and sentence stem from an investigation that unfolded on June 14, 2022, when, at around 1:15 a.m., members of the Beverly City Police Department responded to a 911 Emergency Call reporting that Brown had beaten to death Cecilio Luciano, 34, of Highland Park, New Jersey inside a home located on Bently Avenue in Beverly City.

Standoff With Police

     Upon arrival, Police Officers learned that Brown, following the killing, had barricaded himself inside the home with a woman and four children.

     When Brown refused to exit the home, a standoff ensued. Over the next few hours, the woman and children emerged from the house unharmed. After tense negotiations with members of the New Jersey State Police Teams Unit, Brown surrendered at 8:30 a.m. Upon entry into the home, New Jersey State Troopers and Beverly City Police Officers found Mr. Luciano’s body.

     A subsequent autopsy performed by the Burlington County Medical Examiner’s Office found that Mr. Luciano had been bludgeoned to death with a baseball bat.