Victim ID'd as ex-con who turned in officer

Originally Published January 3, 2008; Page 1A
By LEO STRUPCZEWSKI
Courier-Post Staff

A stick-up artist and informant who helped police take down a crooked cop was identified by officials Wednesday as the city's first homicide victim of 2008.

Thomas Ortiz, 37, was found shot in the 1400 block of South 4th Street shortly before 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, officials said.

Investigators have no motive or suspects.


In November 2006, Ortiz worked with New Jersey State Police investigating Camden Police Cpl. Michael Hearne, law enforcement sources and Ortiz's girlfriend confirmed. Hearne loaned Ortiz a loaded .38-caliber Smith & Wesson with which he would rob drug dealers. The two would split the proceeds.

Hearne was arrested at the Super 8 Motel in Bellmawr during a Nov. 10, 2006, raid, still in his police uniform. Hearne believed he was meeting with Ortiz to count cash from a recent robbery, officials said.

Hearne pleaded guilty in September and received a seven-year state prison sentence.

Beginning in 1990, Ortiz spent about 14 years in prison on robbery, theft and parole violation charges, according to the state's Department of Corrections.

His girlfriend, Liz Colon, said she pleaded with Ortiz to leave the streets.

"He said he was gonna get help, get his life together," Colon said Wednesday. "He just wanted to be happy."

But Ortiz grew uneasy about living in Camden after working with investigators.

His family couldn't afford the move from the city, he told a reporter on several occasions.

"Here, everybody knows where we live," Colon said.

About a month ago, state police paid for the family's relocation to Pennsylvania.

Colon said the couple was adjusting to the move. No one Ortiz dealt with in Camden knew where he lived, she said.

"It helped him relaxation wise," she said. "He would be at peace."

After a New Year's Eve celebration in Camden, Ortiz and Colon went home. Colon said she woke up at 6 a.m. Tuesday. "He wasn't at the house," she said.

Reach Leo Strupczewski at (856) 317-7828 or lstrupczewski@courierpostonline.com