http://www.dailyrecord.com/apps/pbcs...32/1203/NEWS01
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On Thu, 23 Nov 2006 07:05:49 GMT, Mike Vandeman
wrote:

Cops: Sparta man killed brother
Victim's young daughter saw shooting, police say
BY ABBOTT KOLOFF
AND MATT MANOCHIO
DAILY RECORD

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SPARTA -- A township man, considered a local biking and skiing legend,
shot and killed his older brother in front of his kindergarten-age
niece on Tuesday morning, authorities said.
Daniel Thropp, 43, was in jail Tuesday evening, with police saying
they planned to file gun and murder charges against him.
Alan Thropp, 49, was shot multiple times at his East Shore Trail home,
where police responded early Tuesday, authorities said. He made an
emergency call to police at 6:41 a.m.
Police said they recovered a hunting rifle outside the house but had
not determined who owned it and had not determined whether it was used
in the shooting. Alan Thropp was alive when police arrived, but it was
not clear on Tuesday whether he said anything to authorities about the
shooting.
"I don't think there was any ongoing feud or anything like that that
I've heard of," said Bill Fitzgibbons, first assistant prosecutor with
the Sussex County Prosecutor's office.
Daniel Thropp, who lives on Hunter's Lane and owned his own
landscaping business, had recently visited a Daily Record office and
presented papers claiming a developer was trying to poison him to get
his house. He also indicated in those papers that he had tried to get
Sparta Police Chief Ernest Reigstad to sign a paper acknowledging
Thropp's claims of "criminal poisoning."
Fitzgibbons said he couldn't say anything about Thropp's mental
condition, adding that it's part of the investigation. He said he
hadn't heard about Thropp's alleged dealings with the Sparta police.
Reigstad was unavailable for comment and did not respond to an
interview request.
Authorities said first aid crews tried to revive Alan Thropp, but he
died in the Newton Memorial Hospital emergency room at 7:47 a.m.,
about one hour after police were called.
At the scene
Police also said Alan Thropp's daughter, who they said was either 5 or
6 years old, was the only witness to the shooting. They said Daniel
Thropp was at his brother's house when police arrived but did not
appear agitated. They said he didn't give a statement to authorities,
and instead asked for an attorney.
"It was very calm," Fitzgibbons said.
Daniel Thropp was lodged in the Sussex County jail Tuesday night with
a hearing set for today in Newton.
Alan Thropp was divorced and had joint custody of a daughter,
according to authorities. The little girl was staying with her mother
in Hopatcong Tuesday night, they said.
Lisa Champion, Alan Thropp's neighbor, described him as a hard worker
who owned an excavating and septic business, and who would plow
neighbors' driveways in winter. She also said he was a doting father.
She said she saw police at the scene Tuesday morning.
"I saw them performing CPR," she said. "I didn't know who it was until
they confirmed (it was Alan). ... Alan was a workaholic. He was an
awesome neighbor to have. He watched out for all of us. ... It's a
tragedy, an absolute tragedy."
She said that Thropp's young daughter was a bright spot in his life.
"His life went around her,"she said. "He dropped everything. You knew
a child was part of that house, with the toys and the swings, and the
blow-up inflatables for the holiday. He lived for her. He was so proud
to show her off. It just fills your heart with how much love he had
for that little girl."
A tri-athlete
Daniel Thropp was described by friends as an athletic legend around
Sussex County, with a quirky personality, who suddenly stopped
communicating with many of his old friends a couple of years ago. They
said they would see him around town, often at the library, but that he
no longer participated in local athletic events.
He had been known as a tri-athlete, who won a grueling three-sport
race that involved mountain biking, skiing and running in Killington,
Vt., several years running. They said he had been captain of ski teams
at Sparta High School and Penn State University. He later went into
finance, friends said -- but then dropped out of the business world to
spend more time skiing, doing the things he loved.
"I admired that he knew what he wanted to do, and did it," said Tracy
Blake, 46, of Andover Township, who knew the Thropp family while
growing up in Sparta.
In papers he gave to the Daily Record, Daniel Thropp said that he
owned Sparta Exterior Services and Sparta Lawn Care for many years. He
also claimed in those papers that he was suffering from "acute
exposure" to some sort of compound but indicated that no one took him
seriously.
"If you are a landscaper, sheep farmer or Gulf War veteran and claim
damage you will be ignored," he wrote.
Blake remained friendly with Daniel Thropp over the years because they
were both members of a local bicycling club. She and other friends
said he often showed up riding a clunker bike, sometimes his
girlfriend's bike, without a water bottle, helmet, or proper cycling
clothes. His friends said he easily won races competing against
cyclists who rode much more expensive bicycles.
"He was an extremely talented athlete, easy going, friendly, helpful,"
Blake said.
Blake said Daniel talked fondly about his brother, Alan. She also said
Daniel Thropp stopped coming to bicycling events a couple of years ago
and appeared to stop working as a landscaper. She said he seemed to
lose contact with his old friends.
"I don't know what's been in his mind lately," she said.
===
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===
I am working on creating wildlife habitat that is off-limits to
humans ("pure habitat"). Want to help? (I spent the previous 8
years fighting auto dependence and road construction.)

Please don't put a cell phone next to any part of your body that you are fond of!

http://home.pacbell.net/mjvande