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Camden man shot dead, husband and wife charged with murder

A family squabble in Camden left one man dead Saturday night and a couple facing the possibility of life in prison.

A family squabble in Camden left one man dead Saturday night and a couple facing the possibility of life in prison.

Ronnie Rogers, 49, of 27th Street in Camden, is charged with murder and was held on $750,000 bail Monday by Superior Court Judge Thomas Brown in Camden.

His wife, Debra Rogers, 48, also is charged with murder, but fled Saturday night after each of the Rogerses allegedly shot Avner Daniels, 32, of Camden.

Authorities said the couple's 28-year-old daughter and her boyfriend had an argument about 6:30 p.m. outside the apartment they shared in the 100 block of 32d Street.

Ronnie and Debra Rogers arrived at the apartment to find the boyfriend, who was not identified, gone. The boyfriend's sister and her husband, Daniels, were in their car, preparing to leave. An argument ensued between the two couples, authorities said.

Ronnie Rogers pulled a gun and Daniels tried to wrestle it from him, Camden County Assistant Prosecutor Mary Alison Albright said. During the struggle, Rogers was shot in the left arm with his own weapon.

Albright said Ronnie Rogers yelled to his daughter to get another gun from his car. She obliged and fired several shots in the air. Debra Rogers then took the gun and allegedly shot Daniels, Albright said.

Three witnesses reported that after Daniels fell to the ground, Ronnie Rogers took the gun from his wife and shot Daniels again, Albright said.

Daniels was shot four times in the chest and torso, according to authorities. He was taken to Underwood Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead about 9 p.m.

Ronnie Rogers, his long hair in dreadlocks, appeared in court with his left arm bandaged from the hand to above the elbow. His right arm was cuffed to a chain around his waist.

"This defendant escalated what was a fistfight into a murder," Albright said. "Because he had a gun, someone is dead."

The Rogers' daughter told investigators that she did not see the shots fired, but heard them, authorities said. When she looked, her parents were gone.

Police spotted Ronnie Rogers driving on 20th Street shortly after the shooting. His wife was not in the car, Albright said. Police were still looking for her on Monday.

Ronnie Rogers has a criminal history dating to 1982 that includes convictions for assault, drug offenses, and theft. He was last sent to prison in 1995 for drug possession and sentenced to five years. State records show he was released in 1998.

Anyone with information on Debra Rogers' whereabouts is urged to contact Camden County Prosecutor's Office Investigator James Pisano at 856-225-8400 or Camden police at 856-757-5420.