Insets, from left: Stephen Smink (New Jersey Department of Corrections) and Cumberland County Prosecutor Jennifer Webb-McRae (Cumberland County). Background: Loyle Lanes in New Jersey when it burned down in 2010 (WPVI).
A former New Jersey bowling alley proprietor, previously convicted of incinerating a competitor’s venue, has been found guilty of attempting to murder the officials responsible for his incarceration.
Stephen Smink, aged 62, was found guilty on charges including conspiracy to commit murder, five counts of attempted murder, and conspiracy to transport weapons, according to the Garden State Attorney General’s Office.
Smink owned a bowling alley in southern New Jersey and orchestrated a plot in 2010 with two accomplices to destroy Loyle Lanes Bowling Center to remove the competition. He was later found guilty of arson and received a 15-year state prison sentence.
But Smink was not done with his criminal ways — and this time he went from eliminating rival businesses to trying to take out people.
Prosecutors allege that in January 2019, New Jersey State Police were informed that Smink, while imprisoned, contracted a “cooperating witness” during late 2017 and early 2018 to locate someone to assassinate those involved in his arson conviction. His targets included Cumberland County Prosecutor Jennifer Webb-McRae, First Assistant Prosecutor Harold Shapiro, two Superior Court judges, and an assistant prosecutor who originally sent him to prison.
Investigators discovered that before recruiting the witness, Smink had engaged a member of the imprisoned Latin Kings gang to execute the murders. However, this individual passed away before completing the task.
He even had his mother, now deceased, help him out by having her “write correspondence in furtherance of the conspiracy on his behalf,” prosecutors said. Smink apparently sold off some of his sports memorabilia to pay for the hits, and the witness set up a meeting between Smink and an undercover cop.
“If everybody was together, wipe the whole place out and kill everybody it just looks like somebody making an assault, a gangs meeting,” he told the cop.
He also said: “If somebody shot up the place it looks like the gang getting retribution.”
Smink was convicted on Aug. 15. He now faces 30 years to life in prison when he is sentenced on Sept. 26.
“This conviction sends a clear message: anyone who conspires to harm government officials will be brought to justice,” said Col. Patrick J. Callahan, Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police. “The safety of those who serve the public is non-negotiable, and this outcome reflects the outstanding work of the detectives who pursued this case with unwavering commitment. Their efforts not only protected lives but also upheld the integrity of our democracy.”
