TOMS RIVER, NJ – Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer announced that on November 3, 2021, the Honorable Wendel E. Daniels, P.J.Cr.P, ordered that Sherry Lee Heffernan, 55, of Landenberg, Pennsylvania, shall remain detained in the Ocean County Jail pending trial on two counts of Murder in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:11-3a(1), relative to the deaths of John Enders and Francoise Pitoy in Surf City on or about September 29, 2021. Heffernan is also charged with Possession of a Weapon -specifically a knife – for an Unlawful Purpose in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:39-4d; Unlawful Possession of Weapon in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:39-5d; Possession of a Weapon – specifically a handgun – for an Unlawful Purpose in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:39-4a; and Unlawful Possession of a Weapon in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:39-5b.
On October 4, 2021, Heffernan was taken into custody by the Pennsylvania State Police at her residence in Landenberg. On October 20, 2021, Heffernan was returned to New Jersey and has been lodged in the Ocean County Jail since that date.
Original Report:
LONG BEACH ISLAND, NJ – A Pennsylvania woman has been charged with two counts of murder in Surf City after she stabbed and killed her 87-year-old father and his 75-year-old girlfriend.
The Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Reported:
Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer and Surf City Police Chief John N. Casella, Jr., announced that Sherry Lee Heffernan, 55, of Landenberg, Pennsylvania, has been charged with two counts of Murder in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:11-3a(1) relative to the deaths of John Enders and Francoise Pitoy in Surf City on or about September 29, 2021. Heffernan was also charged with Possession of a Weapon for an Unlawful Purpose in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:39-4d, and Unlawful Possession of Weapon in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:39-5d.
On October 3, 2021, at approximately 4:00 p.m., Officers from the Surf City Police Department responded to a residence on North 7th Street to conduct a welfare check upon the residents. When they arrived, officers located the bodies of John Enders, 87, of Surf City, and Francoise Pitoy, 75, of Manchester; it was readily apparent they were deceased, having suffered multiple obvious stab wounds. On October 4, 2021, the Ocean County Medical Examiner performed a post-mortem examination of Mr. Enders and determined the cause of his death to be multiple stab wounds with severance of the right carotid artery and blunt force trauma; the manner of death was ruled to be a homicide. A post-mortem examination of Ms. Pitoy is scheduled for today.
A subsequent investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit, Surf City Police Department, and Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit revealed that the victims were involved in a dating relationship and that Mr. Enders was the primary owner of the residence. Ms. Pitoy stayed with him at the residence regularly.
“The cooperative investigation ultimately determined that Heffernan, Mr. Enders’ daughter, was responsible for the deaths of both Mr. Enders and Ms. Pitoy,” Prosecutor Billhimer stated.