Waterloo Double Murder Conviction Upheld

Emerson "John" Tohafjian is led from the Seneca County Courthouse following his arraignment in this file photo from August 6th, 2018. (Photo by Greg Cotterill, Finger Lakes News Radio)

An appeals court has upheld the conviction of a Varick man for a double murder in Waterloo five years ago.

According to the Finger Lakes Times, the Fourth Judicial Department of State Supreme Court in a unanimous decision upheld the conviction of Emerson “John” Tohafjian. He was found guilty of first-degree murder and other charges for the July 2018 shooting deaths of his ex-girlfriend, Lori McConnell, and Chuck Andrus at a Virginia Street apartment house.

The court rejected an argument that Tohafjian did not have adequate legal representation in the trial. The court added that claims of prosecutorial misconduct were without merit.

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