Door-To-Door Salesman Sentenced In Fatal Stabbing Of Ocean County Man

TOMS RIVER, NJ — A door-to-door salesman from Middlesex County has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for stabbing a man to death in the middle of the street in May 2022, the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office said.

Michael H. Tsamas, 35, of the Laurence Harbor section of Old Bridge, was sentenced Thursday by Superior Court Judge Guy P. Ryan in the killing of Joseph Delgardio, 44, of Jackson Township. The sentence is subject to the No Early Release Act, meaning Tsamas will be required to serve at least 17 years — 85 percent of his prison sentence — before becoming eligible for parole.

Tsamas was found guilty in March of aggravated manslaughter following a two-week jury trial before Ryan. He also was found guilty of possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, two counts of unlawful possession of a weapon, and two counts of possession of a prohibited weapon.

Tsamas was working for a company hired by Verizon to sell its service door to door on May 26, 2022, about 6 p.m. and had knocked on Delgardio’s door to try to solicit his business, the prosecutor's office said.

Delgardio told Tsamas he was not interested, and Tsamas left the house.

At trial, Delgardio's wife, Jaime, testified her husband went after Tsamas because they were concerned he was a scammer and they had given him their Jersey Central Power & Light account number, the Asbury Park Press reported. They wanted Tsamas to get rid of their account number, according to the report.

When Delgardio confronted Tsamas on the street, a fight ensued and during the fight Tsamas removed a dagger from his pocket and stabbed Delgardio in the neck, severing his carotid artery, the prosecutor's office said. He bled to death in the street.

Jackson police were called to the area of West Veterans Highway and Conor Road about a man lying in a pool of blood in the road. When police arrived they found firefighters giving Delgardio CPR but those measures were unsuccessful and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Tsamas, who was still at the scene, was arrested and taken to the Ocean County Jail but initially was released as a consequence of New Jersey Bail Reform. He was taken back to jail after the March 26 guilty verdict, according to court records.