Rebong Murder Investigation

Launches A Poster Campaign

By Andrew Gorosko

State police have published a poster seeking information to aid their investigation into the violent death of Newtown resident Mark F. Rebong, who was fatally shot in January in Danbury while on his way to work.

The color poster, which is displayed in police stations and public buildings in the region, includes a photo of the late Mr Rebong, a picture of the black 1999 Jeep Cherokee he was driving when he was shot, and a view the area where the shooting occurred.

State police Sergeant Warren Hyatt, a detective with the western district major crime squad, who has been investigating the case, said this week the posters have been distributed in the Interstate-84 corridor in an effort to solicit information from travelers on that road who may have seen the shooting January 17. The posters have been distributed eastward to Waterbury and westward into New York State.

State police are continuing to conduct interviews in their murder investigation, Sgt Hyatt said.

State police received an emergency 911 telephone call about 11 pm January 17, reporting a motor vehicle accident on the westbound I-84 Exit 2 A/B off-ramp. On arriving at the scene, state police found Mr Rebong, 28, gravely wounded inside the Jeep, in a grassy area against the fence of a commuter parking lot, where the vehicle had rolled after he was shot. Mr Rebong died the following night at Danbury Hospital.

The case has proved especially puzzling to investigators.

 State police detectives are awaiting a forensics report on their April reconstruction of the shooting of Mr Rebong, Sgt Hyatt said.

 The report is a project of Dr Henry Lee, the renowned forensic scientist who conducts investigations of difficult criminal cases for the state police.

In the glare of floodlights late on the night of April 25, Dr Lee and a large team of state police investigators meticulously reconstructed the dynamics of Mr Rebong’s shooting on westbound Interstate-84. The detectives walked along Exit 2 A/B, watching, measuring, and photographing the slow progress of the black Jeep Cherokee as it was driven through the area where Mr Rebong was shot once in the head late at night while driving to work at the nearby Danbury Hilton and Towers. In reconstructing Mr Rebong’s murder, state police were seeking to determine the possible ways in which he was shot.

Investigators are trying to learn if Mr Rebong’s shooting death was a case of road rage, a drive-by shooting, or a revenge killing. State police have discounted robbery as a motive.

Mr Rebong was the son of Dr Efren Rebong, a psychiatrist at Danbury Hospital. The Rebong family, friends, and colleagues are offering a $20,000 reward as an incentive to people who may know the circumstances of Mr Rebong’s death and provide state police with information leading to the arrest of his killer.

In the poster seeking information on Mr Rebong’s death, state police ask anyone who may have been traveling near Exit 2 between 10:30 and 11:15 pm January 17 and may have witnessed the shooting to contact them at 800/376-1554, or 203/267-2200, or 203/267-2226.