Man pleads guilty to threatening Rutgers student who has been missing since November
Adam Zalouk avoids jail time by pleading guilty. He pleads to a charge of terroristic threats for threatening Morty Wortman with a knife last summer. The Ocean Prosecutor said they couldn't push further without testimony from Wortman who has been missing since November 21st.
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A man has pleaded guilty to threatening a Rutgers University student who has been missing for several months.
Morty Wortman has been missing since Nov. 21
Adam Zalouk, the man Wortman was with the night he disappeared, was in court in Toms River on Monday to plead guilty to threatening Wortman with a knife back in July. Police reported that Zalouk threatened Wortman because Wortman turned down Zalouk's sexual advances.
A police report also stated Zalouk carved the word "slut" into Wortman's car that same day.
Zalouk will avoid jail time as part of the deal, which the Ocean County Prosecutor says was offered because Wortman isn't available to testify. Two other charges of weapons possession and criminal mischief were dropped. Zalouk agreed to pre-trial intervention.
Zalouk has not been linked with Wortman’s disappearance, which is still under investigation.
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Wortman’s family and friends were in the courtroom and did not agree with the plea deal. They are convinced Zalouk knows more about the disappearance.
“I know [Zalouk] did something. [Wortman] would never just disappear. He would never leave his family. He’s a mama's boy. [Zalouk] had something to do with it," said Wortman's friend, Trinity Cottrell. "He was telling me in the summer that he was being stalked by [Zalouk] and there were numerous conversations that [Wortman] expressed his fear for that."
Others expressed great frustration with the deal.
“They said that he can’t be charged because there’s no evidence, because there’s no victim present. What are we supposed to do?" said Nick Moccio.
The search for Wortman continues. There’s a $10,000 reward for information leading to Wortman's whereabouts.
A nonprofit called the CUE Center for Missing Persons has agreed to investigate.
Zalouk’s attorney did not want to speak following the court hearing.
