NJ state trooper who killed ex and her new boyfriend was once reported for manipulating overtime rules to juice salary to over $400K, suit alleges
Sgt. First Class Ricardo Santos, 45, committed the heinous slayings after stalking and harassing his ex, 33-year-old veterinarian Lauren Semanchik, according to cops.
3 Veterinarian Lauren Semanchik and firefighter Tyler Webb were shot to death by her jealous ex-boyfriend, New Jersey State Police sergeant first class Ricardo Santos.
Courtesy Webb Family
The bitter ex followed Semanchik from her job to her home in Franklin Township, N.J. on Saturday night and was lying in wait for her new boyfriend, firefighter Tyler Webb, 29, to pull into the driveway.
Santos then killed them both in the house, before he drove some 50 miles away to a Piscataway park where he parked his 2008 white Mercedes and took his own life, prosecutors said.
3 Webb was a longtime member of the Pinewald Fire Company.
Pinewald Pioneer Fire Co.
But less than two years ago, Santos was allegedly flying high, earning approximately four times the average salary of an NJ state trooper, according to GlassDoor figures.
In a 2023 discrimination lawsuit against the State of New Jersey, the New Jersey State Police and three members of the department's top brass, fellow state trooper Claire Krauchuk alleged she was penalized after she divulged that Santos had been cheating the department's overtime rules.
Krauchuk reported Santos for violating standard operating procedure by 'adjusting his hours within the e-daily system' so he could get around a restriction capping overtime at six hours, the suit alleges.
3 The killings took place at Semanchik's Franklin Township, N.J. home
By using this method, Santos — who was not mentioned in the suit outside of this context — was able to juice his salary to the tune of over $400,000, according to the suit, which was brought by four current and former employees of the department.
Santos had not been charged with any wrongdoing, the lawsuit noted.
After reporting Santos, Krauchuk was removed from her post in the Executive Protection Unit and from Governor Phil Murphy's detail, in which Santos had also served.
Santos and Semanchik dated for approximately three months before she ended things last September.
After the break-up, Santos allegedly wouldn't stop contacting her, to the point her mother, Jennie, attempted to file a restraining order against him with the Franklin Township Police, according to NJ Advance Media.
However, no restraining order was ever granted.
Franklin Township Police did not immediately respond to a message from The Post asking about the alleged attempt at securing a restraining order or whether one was denied.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
17 hours ago
- New York Post
Lauren Semanchik feared NJ trooper ex-beau before murder
Slain veterinarian Lauren Semanchik feared for her life and even threatened to get a restraining order against New Jersey state trooper Ricardo Santos nearly a year before the deranged ex-boyfriend killed her in a sickening murder-suicide, text messages show. The series of texts from October and viewed by The Post paint an ugly picture of Santos' incessant need to harangue his ex-girlfriend, 33, after they called it quits the previous month — as Semanchik's loved ones this week described his behavior akin to 'Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.' 'I mean it would be one message of him telling her how amazing she is, and then the next calling her an evil manipulator and liar and how could you do this to such a nice guy. I would read it and I would be cackling how he thought he sounded sane,' younger sibling Allison Semanchik, 28, told The Post. Advertisement 4 Near the end of the conversation, Semanchik said he was ready to file a restraining order. Obtained by the NY Post 'Even though it looked like a toddler wrote the messages, still the malice that came through was entirely disturbing,' she added. The stomach-turning shooting that also claimed Lauren Semanshik's new beau, Tyler Webb, 29, Friday has led to questions about Santos' mental stability even as he was tasked with protecting dignitaries, including at one time Gov. Phil Murphy. Advertisement The exchange of messages appear to show the pair arguing over a guy Lauren Semanchik was briefly in contact with after the break-up and how Santos found out about it, including if he looked through her Facebook account or phone. Lauren Semanchik also accused the state police lieutenant of bugging part of her Franklin Township home, heightening her fear of the former beau, 45, even as he denied that and claimed a mutual friend filled him in about her texting the other guy she never met up with. 'I FEEL THREATENED,' she wrote in one message to Santos and then said in another she was scared because she found water in the gas tank of her car. 'I am done communicating with you,' she ultimately said as Santos persisted. Advertisement 4 The beloved sister and her new beau were killed Friday. Courtesy Webb Family 'If you continue to either reach out to me or invade my privacy in any way, I will be getting a restraining order.' Lauren Semanchik only inquired about a restraining order months later in May of this year, but didn't end up getting one after she didn't hear back from authorities, her sisters said. Santos sent texts that attempted to guilt Lauren Semanchik while also pleading her for to give the pair another shot. Advertisement 4 Obtained by the NY Post 'i am still trying with all my heart for every crum[b] you and your heart that you'd be willing to give me,' he said in one message while assailing her as a 'narcissist young woman who is a bully and can't own the fact you got caught being rotten to a good guy who always had your back.' The pair's courtship started in February 2024, and Santos presented himself as a 'knight in shining armor,' sister Allison Semanchik recalled. At the time, Lauren Semanchik was in a wheelchair after she broke both of her heels in an accident, but Santos was accommodating, showering her with flowers and treats. 'He was setting this stage that I was so worried about and unfortunately she was desperate to be treated well so she fed into it and she liked it,' Allison said. 4 Santos also killed himself about 50 miles away. Obtained by the NY Post 'He gave us no real indication of how sick of a person he really was.' As Lauren Semanchik recovered and regained her independence, issues doomed the relationship and led to Santos' erratic behavior, she said. Advertisement Santos shot and killed Lauren Semanchik and Webb in front of her house before he drove 50 miles away and killed himself inside his white Mercedes, Hunterdon County prosecutors said. The couple's bodies were found the following day. Allison Semanchik remembered her sibling, a vet at Long Valley Animal Hospital, as the 'good sister' who 'went into every interaction, every relationship, only ever trying to see the good in people.' 'She was the most compassionate, quirky, big disco ball of light,' she added. 'All she wanted was to help animals and do whatever she could to make people more comfortable.' Advertisement Webb, who had only just started dating Lauren Semanchik, was also remembered as a loving friend. 'Tyler Webb was a loyal and loving friend for 28 years and will always be remembered as a hero,' said his pal Jessica Lynne Cox in an email to The Post. 'I ask for everyone to keep the Webb family in their thoughts and prayers during this difficult time.'
USA Today
2 days ago
- USA Today
Marjorie Taylor Greene asks for George Santos' sentence to be commuted
Former New York Republican congressman George Santos began a seven-year federal sentence on charges of wire fraud and aggravated identity theft on July 25. U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene is asking President Donald Trump to commute former U.S. Rep. George Santos' prison sentence. Santos, a 37-year-old Republican from New York, reported to the Federal Correctional Institution Flatiron Satellite Camp in New Jersey on Friday, July 25 to begin a seven-year prison sentence for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Santos pleaded guilty to the charges last year. Less than two weeks after the disgraced politician's sentence began, Greene, a Republican from Georgia, sent a letter to Pardon Attorney Edward R Martin requesting that he urge the president to take action on the matter. 'I wholeheartedly believe in justice and the rule of the law and I understand the gravity of such actions,' wrote Greene. 'However, I believe a seven-year sentence for such campaign-related matters for an individual with no prior criminal record extends far beyond what is warranted.' Greene continued her letter, stating Santos is 'sincerely remorseful and has accepted full responsibility for his actions.' She alleged: 'Many of my colleagues who I serve with have committed far worse offenses than Mr. Santos yet have faced zero criminal charges.' Newsmax's Rob Finnerty asked the president about intervening in Santos' case in an interview that aired on Friday, Aug. 1. Trump said Santos 'lied like hell,' but 'he was 100 percent for Trump.' Trump said he didn't know Santos and wasn't sure if he had ever met him. While no one specifically asked him to intervene in the case, the president agreed that seven years is 'a long time.' He didn't rule out the possibility of commuting Santos' sentence, telling Finnerty: 'I have the right to do it.' In his second administration, Trump's already granted 58 pardons and 12 commutations. On the president's first day in office, he granted clemency to every person charged or convicted for their role in the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol. More recently, he pardoned reality TV stars Julie and Todd Chrisley. The couple was convicted of fraud and tax evasion in 2022. Their daughter, Savannah Chrisley, has been a staunch Trump supporter and endorsed the president in a speech at the 2020 Republican National Convention. Shortly after Santos won the New York Third Congressional District election in 2022, media outlets discovered he had lied about much of his past, including a career on Wall Street, connections to the Holocaust and the Sept. 11 attacks. Parts of his resume also were called into question. In December 2023, he was expelled by his fellow congressional members. Santos had a history of advocating for the president's agenda and found himself aligned with other lawmakers who shared similar ideals, including Greene. Shortly after arriving in prison, Santos wrote an op-ed for The South Shore Press, a Long Island, New York-area newspaper, which was published on Monday, Aug. 4. 'As I crossed the threshold of the dormitory and took my first steps into what would become my new reality, I caught a glimpse of myself in the small, scratched mirror held up by one of the inmates,' wrote Santos. 'That image – me, hollow-eyed, clad in state-issued polyester – hit me like a punch to the gut.' Michelle Del Rey is a trending news reporter at USA TODAY. Contact her at mdelrey@
New York Post
2 days ago
- New York Post
NJ state trooper who killed ex and her new boyfriend was once reported for manipulating overtime rules to juice salary to over $400K, suit alleges
The New Jersey State Police sergeant who shot his ex-girlfriend and her new beau before turning the gun on himself manipulated departmental rules restricting overtime to draw a salary of over $400,000 per year, details in a lawsuit allege. Sgt. First Class Ricardo Santos, 45, committed the heinous slayings after stalking and harassing his ex, 33-year-old veterinarian Lauren Semanchik, according to cops. 3 Veterinarian Lauren Semanchik and firefighter Tyler Webb were shot to death by her jealous ex-boyfriend, New Jersey State Police sergeant first class Ricardo Santos. Courtesy Webb Family The bitter ex followed Semanchik from her job to her home in Franklin Township, N.J. on Saturday night and was lying in wait for her new boyfriend, firefighter Tyler Webb, 29, to pull into the driveway. Santos then killed them both in the house, before he drove some 50 miles away to a Piscataway park where he parked his 2008 white Mercedes and took his own life, prosecutors said. 3 Webb was a longtime member of the Pinewald Fire Company. Pinewald Pioneer Fire Co. But less than two years ago, Santos was allegedly flying high, earning approximately four times the average salary of an NJ state trooper, according to GlassDoor figures. In a 2023 discrimination lawsuit against the State of New Jersey, the New Jersey State Police and three members of the department's top brass, fellow state trooper Claire Krauchuk alleged she was penalized after she divulged that Santos had been cheating the department's overtime rules. Krauchuk reported Santos for violating standard operating procedure by 'adjusting his hours within the e-daily system' so he could get around a restriction capping overtime at six hours, the suit alleges. 3 The killings took place at Semanchik's Franklin Township, N.J. home By using this method, Santos — who was not mentioned in the suit outside of this context — was able to juice his salary to the tune of over $400,000, according to the suit, which was brought by four current and former employees of the department. Santos had not been charged with any wrongdoing, the lawsuit noted. After reporting Santos, Krauchuk was removed from her post in the Executive Protection Unit and from Governor Phil Murphy's detail, in which Santos had also served. Santos and Semanchik dated for approximately three months before she ended things last September. After the break-up, Santos allegedly wouldn't stop contacting her, to the point her mother, Jennie, attempted to file a restraining order against him with the Franklin Township Police, according to NJ Advance Media. However, no restraining order was ever granted. Franklin Township Police did not immediately respond to a message from The Post asking about the alleged attempt at securing a restraining order or whether one was denied.
