Fraud victim wanted to help mom, family says

A photo of Justin Newman and the bass he caught in Lake Zurich won a spot on the wall of a bait shop by the lake.

Newman, 20, loved to fish the waters of Lake Zurich in the two years he lived at the South Shore Mobile Home Park -- returning periodically after moving with his family to an apartment in Arlington Heights in 2006.

"We nicknamed him 'Smiley.' He was the only kid who could go out fishing and he could smile and the fish would jump on the pole for him," said Dave Maurer, manager of the mobile home park.

Family and friends grieved Friday the man's murder in a scheme to get rich by cashing in an insurance policy.

A construction contractor, who shopped frequently at the Home Depot in Lake Zurich where Newman worked, invited the young man to his Lake Barrington home for a meeting with promises of a more lucrative job, police said.

But contractor Ari Squire, who had a business in Des Plaines, lay in wait with a plan to kill Newman and make the murder look like his own accidental death.

Squire, 39, hatched the plot so he could collect his own $5 million life insurance policy, authorities said.

Squire made it look like he had died on Feb. 23 in his garage when a jack slipped and his truck crushed him, Lake County sheriff's police said. A fire charred the body beyond recognition.

Squire, who shot himself in a Missouri hotel room Sunday as police closed in, used hair dye and color contacts to adopt Newman's identity. He dressed in Newman's clothes so investigators would believe it was Squire who had died in the Lake Barrington garage, police said.

As the details of his death emerged, Newman's friends and family grappled with the news that he had trusted the wrong person in an effort to land a better job to support his mother and help pay her medical bills.

Newman had talked of Squire's offer at least a month ago, said Emil Corona, his great-uncle in Arlington Heights.

Newman told his mother and co-workers he was going to meet with Squire on Feb. 23 at his home to discuss a job in Missouri where he would earn at least $5 more an hour than the $10 he pulled in at Home Depot.

Taking the higher-paying job would help him and his half-brother earn more money to help take care of their mother, Corona said.

"Justin was hoping to make a lot of money," Corona said.

Maurer also recalled Newman chatting up the job offer in recent weeks.

"He was like, 'Dude, I got to move up and make more money,'" Maurer said. "The guy had dreams."

Newman got a job bagging groceries at the Jewel in Lake Zurich when he was 16 before landing a job at Home Depot when he turned 18.

He worked the 4 a.m.-to-1 p.m. shift.

At the South Shore park, he would often help neighbors carry their groceries.

"You would have no problems having this guy as a son or a brother," Corona said. "This boy was a good boy."

Newman was a fan of NASCAR racing and loved to watch Cubs games on warm summer nights on the deck of their mobile home when they lived in Lake Zurich.

Newman lived with his mother in Wood Dale before moving to the South Shore park in 2004. He attended Fenton High School for his freshman year, 2002-03, a school spokeswoman said.

When told of Squire's offer, Maurer said he told Newman to think about it since he was skeptical given the housing market downturn.

"I told him right now is not a good time for contractors," he said. "We just said you really have to think about it."

Newman's mother reported him missing Feb. 25. She also told police that she received text messages from Newman's cell phone, telling her that he was OK but out of town.

That raised a red flag among Newman's friends, who said he didn't like to text message. Investigators said it was Squire sending Newman's mother those texts.

"Justin would rather call you than text," Maurer said. "Once I got the word that (his mom) got a text message from him, we knew there was a problem."

Family members and friends are disturbed at the thought he was targeted by Squire only because they shared a familiar physique.

"They're beside themselves. They're like in a coma," Corona said.

Funeral arrangements were pending Friday.

A fund has been set up through Harris Bank to help the family with funeral arrangements and to help support Newman's mother with her health expenses.

Corona said anyone interested can donate to the Justin Newman Memorial Fund through Harris Bank using the ID number 80-0156880.