Convict charged in Philly triple murder

A Philadelphia man who is currently incarcerated for a home invasion has been charged in a February 2014 execution-style triple murder, District Attorney Seth Williams said Thursday.

Quadir Jeffries, 25, is accused of killing Keurlin Charles, Brian Williams and Vagner Freemont on the night of Feb. 13, 2014, during a home invasion in Philadelphia’s Lawncrest section.

“Quadir Jeffries committed a horrible triple murder,” Williams said Thursday.

“I chose to give this case to the investigating grand jury because certain witnesses were reluctant to give very, very simple answers to very, very simple questions.”

Assistant District Attorney Andrew Notaristefano said that circumstantial evidence led investigators to believe Jeffries was one of two killers at the scene that night.

The other was alledgedly Cori Thompson, who was arrested in October 2015 after providing a statement to police. The evidence against Jeffries and Thompson link them both to the murders, though Thompson is being tried separately and awaiting trial.

“Mr. Charles was selling marijuana out of the house. [Jeffries] knew that,” said Notaristefano.

“There were connections with Cori Thompson and they were in contact with one another before [Charles]let them into the house. Once they got in the house, they had other plans Mr. Charles was not aware of.

“We needed his associates to come in and answer innocuous questions. They didn’t want to do it. We needed a grand jury to subpoena them to do that,” said Notaristefano.

Jeffries is also charged with three counts of robbery, one count of burglary, one count of possessing an instrument of crime, one count of carrying a firearm without a license, one count of carrying a firearm on public streets and one count of conspiracy. He will next appear in court once a preliminary hearing date is set.

Jeffires is currently in prison, having been found guilty in December of conspiracy, burglary, robbery and aggravated assault for a violent home invasion that took place in Philadelphia’s Hunting Park just last year.

According to the district attorney’s office, sometime prior to his December conviction, Jeffries and two co-conspirators plotted to rob a 57-year-old victim. They followed him to his house, knocked his bedroom door off its hinges, pistol-whipped and stomped him until he was unconscious and took money and marijuana from the house and fled.

Jeffries is currently serving a 20-to-40-year sentence. If convicted of these new charges, he could face up to three life sentences.