Story falls apart: NJ man charged with murder; parents covered up, cops say

BOUND BROOK — A borough man is now charged with first-degree murder a month after police initially believed that a fatal shooting outside his home was the result of a struggle in which the victim got shot by his own gun.

Ryan D. Keogh, 28, was charged Thursday and arrested in Manchester. His parents also were charged with trying to cover up the homicide.

The charges are far from the initial version of events presented by authorities based on what the Keogh family had told them.

A day after the Jan. 9 shooting, prosecutors said that Terrence C. Coulanges, 29, of Old Bridge, had showed up at the Keogh residence on Farm Lane attempting to see the homeowner. Investigators then believed that Coulanges was carrying a handgun that Keogh got a hold of during a struggle in the yard and then fired.

On Thursday, however, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael Robertson provided a different story, charging Keogh with deliberately killing Coulanges.

Robertson said the two men knew each other but Coulanges' reason for coming to the home and the circumstances of the fight remain under investigation.

Coulanges' mother, Lisa Myrick, told NJ.com that Ryan Keogh was friends with her son and they recorded music together. Coulanges was at the Keogh house to get some equipment, according to Myrick, who did not believe that her son would have a gun.

Cindy V. Keogh, 61, and David J. Keogh, 58, turned themselves into the Somerset County Prosecutors Office on Thursday. They were charged with third-degree hindering an investigation, third-degree endangering an injured victim, and fourth-degree false swearing and released on their own recognizance.

Their son faces the same additional charges as well as second-degree possession of a firearm for an unlawful purpose. He was being held at Somerset County Jail and New Jersey 101.5 did not know Thursday whether any of them had attorneys who could speak on their behalf.

Robertson said the initial statements made by all three were found to be inconsistent with the investigation.

Neighbors told investigators they heard gunshots between 5:30 and 6 p.m.

The investigation determined that all three left the home after Coulanges was shot and before Cindy Keogh called 911 at 7:30 p.m. She told the dispatcher that her son had said that a man who had previously lived at the house had showed up with a gun and that it had fired during a struggle. Prosecutors did not say where the three went or why.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com or via Twitter @DanAlexanderNJ

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