Sentence For Rockland Man Who Kept Tarp-Wrapped Body In Storeroom

WEST NYACK, NY — A 65-year-old West Nyack man who killed an Orange County man and kept the body wrapped up in a tarp was sentenced to 15 years in state prison, Rockland County District Attorney Thomas E. Walsh II announced Wednesday.

Joseph Janulewicz had pleaded guilty to manslaughter, saying he meant to cause Brian Romney, 56, serious harm when he stabbed him multiple times. He admitted that he then wrapped the corpse in a blue tarp and kept it in a storage room until it was discovered by the New York State Police, prosecutors said.

They were assisting the Greenwood Lake Police Department with a missing person report.

A relative of Romney's filed a missing person report June 10, 2022 after he did not arrive at his relative’s home as expected on June 8, and had not communicated with his family.

A vehicle belonging to Romney was located on June 15 near Janulewicz's home on East Street.

That resulted in the execution of a search warrant at 35 East St. on June 16 — and the discovery of Romney’s body concealed there in a tarp inside a storage room. Romney suffered multiple stab wounds to his person, and the Medical Examiner ruled the death a homicide, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors did not provide details about the relationship between the two men, who knew each other.

Janulewicz was sentenced in Rockland County Court by the Hon. Anne B. Bianchi to 15 years in state prison and five years of post-release supervision based upon his plea of guilty on Nov. 22 to one count of first-degree manslaughter.

“The defendant in this case is responsible for brutally stabbing the victim multiple times and causing his death," Walsh said. "I commend the dedication and exceptional investigation by the New York State Police with assistance from the Village of Greenwood Lake Police Department in this case. The defendant is now off the streets and will be serving a lengthy prison term for his actions.”