Branford PD Photo
The two neighbors lived side by side, one at 33C Crouch Rd., the other at 33D Crouch Rd. They were friends, according to police. Then in late May 2013, John Deveau (pictured), who lived at 33 Crouch, went missing.
He disappeared, authorities said, after reporting to Branford police that his ATM card was stolen and $30,000 was gone from his account.
The body of Deveau, who was 62 when he disappeared, has never been found. But after a detailed investigation in which credit cards belonging to Deveau were found in the suspect’s car and the DNA of the victim was found on the suspect’s garden hose, Branford police yesterday charged Thomas Malinka, 44, who lived at 33D Crouch, with Deveau’s murder.
“At this juncture the state police have taken the position that he is dead,” Capt. Geoffrey Morgan told the Eagle. “We have not recovered a body.”
Branford PD Photo
Morgan said Malinka (pictured) was charged with homicide based on forensic evidence examined by the state police laboratory and by circumstantial evidence obtained by Detective Lt. Arthur Kohloff and his team who worked closely with the state’s attorney and the state police to obtain the evidence necessary for an arrest without a body.
At the time of his arrest for murder, Malinka was in jail awaiting adjudication on other charges, including one that took place on June 10, 2013, several weeks after Deveau went missing. These charges stem from allegations that Malinka illegally entered Deveau’s house and stole his prescription painkillers. Police later said because the men were friends Malinka may well have had a key to Deveau’s home. Deveau was also Malinka’s landlord, police said.
After obtaining a search warrant, Branford police searched Malinka’s home on June 10, 2013, and found Deveau’s drug prescription in Malinka’s trash. The pills were gone.
Malinka was later arrested and charged in the June 10 case with burglary, a felony, use of drug paraphernalia, a misdemeanor, possession of narcotics, a felony and larceny, a misdemeanor. Court records show this case has been on the docket 13 times and the next scheduled court date is set for June 19.
Malinka had pleaded not guilty to all four June 10 charges. Bond was set at $500,000 and he had not been released from custody. The investigation of Deveau’s disappearance and presumed murder took place while Malinka was in prison.
Yesterday he was accused of the murder of his next-door neighbor and arraigned in New Haven’s state Superior Court. His $500,000 bond from the June 10 case was continued.
In January 2013, Malinka had been arrested by Branford police on other theft and larceny charges. He had pleaded not guilty to those charges as well. This case as well as the June 10th case was set for a June 19 court date. He is represented by the public defender’s office.
Piecing together a murder case without finding the victim’s body is difficult. Chief Kevin Halloran acknowledged the work of all involved and thanked his detectives for their perseverance, which, he said, enabled them “to link Thomas Malinka to this crime.”
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