HARRISBURG, Pa. — After a trial lasting many weeks, a man in his thirties was found guilty of murdering three people by shooting them to death and then setting fire to their bodies a number of years earlier.
Torey White was found guilty of three charges of murder in federal court on Friday, May 19. The killings of Wendy Ann Chaney, 39, Brandon Cole, 47, and Phillip Matthew Jackson, 36, all occurred in 2016, according to the announcement made by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania on May 19. White was held responsible for all three murders. According to reports, Chaney worked as an informant for the government.
According to the office of the United States Attorney, Chaney allegedly dated both White and one of the several other people involved in a criminal case and assisted them in the distribution of drugs. This information was provided by the office of the United States Attorney. According to the reports, White and Kevin Coles, who was found guilty and sentenced to three life terms in prison in March, realized that Chaney was working with federal officials and decided to hire someone to kill her.
Jerell Adgebesan and Kenyatta Corbett, two other co-defendants, are suspected of having recruited members of a gang known as Baltimore’s Black Guerrilla Family to carry out the hit. After the shooting, it was reportedly explained to the hit men that they may keep the $20,000 that had been stashed away in a safe.
According to reports, the hitmen arrived at Jackson’s farm in order to carry out the murder, and when they did so, they discovered not only Chaney but also the other two victims. According to the United States Attorney’s Office, Chaney “was killed to protect the drug trafficking activities of Coles, and his co-conspirators,” while Cole and Jackson “were murdered to prevent them from being witnesses to the crimes of violence that were committed at the Jackson property.”
According to the statement, Chaney, Cole, and Jackson were all shot after having their hands tied behind their backs and being zip-tied first.
Jackson and Cole each received a single gunshot wound to the head, and Chaney was shot twice—once in the back of her neck and once in the back of her head. Cole and Chaney passed away at the scene of the accident, while Jackson was taken to a local hospital where he later passed away.
According to reports, the perpetrators of the shooting never recovered any money, but they did steal firearms and drugs.
In 2022, Adgebesan entered a guilty plea to the charges of committing a robbery under the Hobbs Act and being an accessory to the use of a handgun.
He was then sentenced to life in prison plus 10 years. In addition, Corbett has entered a guilty plea and is currently awaiting punishment.
Other co-defendants charged in connection with the case pleaded guilty to a variety of offenses. According to reports, White could face three consecutive sentences of automatic life imprisonment if convicted.
