EX-US ELITE SOLDIER UNDER SUSPICION

contract killing of German businessman

A former American elite soldier and a sheriff are to be extradited to the Netherlands - for allegedly murdering a German businessman there. Apparently it was about unpaid bills between business partners.

Thomas Schwarz, who lived not far from the German-Dutch border, ran a farming business specializing in growing fruit and vegetables. In 2012, the company opened a branch in Macedonia with more than 100 employees. According to research by Macedonian journalists, the German businessman Udo P., who lives in Dubai, was also involved.

In 2015, the company sold fruit and vegetables to Russia - bypassing EU sanctions against Moscow, which were imposed at the time because of the annexation of Crimea. The Macedonian Ministry of the Interior investigated several employees of the company who allegedly exported goods worth almost 200,000 euros.

Apparently, Schwarz and his company subsequently ran into financial difficulties and turned to Swiss businessman Lukas Fecker. According to the indictment, his company "Innovation Brain" specializes in buying up companies on the brink of bankruptcy. His business partners urged Schwarz to sell his shares in the bankrupt company, but apparently without success.

In the fall of 2019, just over a month before his murder, Schwarz was approached by two people outside his home, according to a witness. These demanded money, but Schwarz refused. The two gave him a warning as a parting shot: another person would soon come to him for the money, but this one would not be so friendly.

One of those men: Jacob Mazeika, a former U.S. Army Ranger who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, among other places. After leaving active duty, Mazeika worked for "anti-trafficking" organizations, his attorney explained. He and other ex-soldiers had conducted reconnaissance as well as "other services."

Mazeika was apparently hired by a former acquaintance and co-defendant, Justin Causey, who worked as a "bodyguard" for Fecker. In October 2019, Fecker wrote to Causey that Thomas Schwarz owed him three million euros. Causey then contacted Mazeika as well as William Johnson, who shortly before had been working as a sheriff in Mississippi - all three knew each other from assignments in Afghanistan.

Causey was able to locate Schwarz's place of residence in the Netherlands, but he refused to pay. Fecker is said to have urged Causey to do so: Schwarz was a "wimp," had no bodyguard and was an "easy target" - and yet, within five weeks, Causey still had not managed to execute the order.

Causey then turned to Mazeika and Johnson. The three men discussed how best to proceed. Black was "fat, not strong," Causey wrote in a chat. Mazeika replied that he just wanted to know how heavy Black would be when he was done. The ex-Army Ranger suggested faking a large package delivery, so they could approach the house and stake it out without anyone suspecting anything.

Fecker's wife eventually booked flights for Mazeika and Johnson to Dusseldorf, where Causey picked them up in a rented VW Polo. In the early morning of November 26, neighbors heard screams coming from Schwarz's apartment, after which two people fled in a Polo. Johnson, who was already spilling the beans in his interview, told investigators he waited in the car while Causey and Mazeika went into the house. They returned 20 minutes later, he said, put their bloodstained clothes in a bag of bleach and threw it into a wood. Causey then returned the rented Polo - without floor mats. He had cleaned these of the blood but had subsequently forgotten to put them back in the Polo.

When Schwarz did not show up at the office that morning, one of his employees got worried and drove to the entrepreneur's house: There, the door was open and traces of blood could be seen. Dutch police discovered Schwarz's body next to the dinner table in a pool of blood: his hands and feet were tied with cables. According to the autopsy report, Schwarz had several ribs broken and had been stabbed multiple times in his arms and legs. He had died, however, of a slashed throat.

Meanwhile, the three killers traveled on to Zurich to see Fecker before returning to the U.S. by different routes and several detours - apparently to cover their tracks. Causey eventually reported to his girlfriend: He had made $230,000 in two months. "The work, though… oh man." His girlfriend replied, "That's a lot! As long as you're okay, I'm okay."

"I'm fine," Causey replied. "It's just a job."