Van led cops to Dunwoody murder suspect
Hemy Neuman was not a suspect in the Dunwoody day care shooting until investigators discovered his name on a rental agreement for a silver Kia Sedona, two people close to the investigation have confirmed.
Discovery evidence released Friday also revealed that the 48-year-old engineer visited a shooting range a little more than two weeks before he allegedly gunned down a co-worker's husband, 36-year-old Rusty Sneiderman, last Nov. 18.
His signature on a sign-in sheet at a Woodstock range was among 3,233 pages of documents collected by the DeKalb County District Attorney's Office and handed over to Neuman's attorneys.
A bit of luck led investigators to Andrea Sneiderman's supervisor at GE Energy, the evidence shows. After scouring GBI records of all Kia Sedona owners, police tracked down the rental location with the largest number of Sedonas on the lot. Prosecutors say Neuman rented the vehicle from that very location the day before he shot Rusty Sneiderman.
A synthetic hair, such as would be found in a fake beard, was lifted from the vehicle, according to a search warrant affidavit filed by the district attorney's office. Witnesses to the shooting described the suspect as a bearded man driving a silver minivan.
It didn't take long for police to focus on Neuman, arrested Jan. 4, labeled as a friend by both the victim and his widow. Police have not implicated Andrea Sneiderman in her husband’s slaying.
Neuman's estranged wife, however, believes the two were having an affair, according to her attorney.
"We believe there was an extramarital relationship between Hemy Neuman and Andrea Sneiderman," lawyer Esther Panitch told the AJC.
Panitch on Thursday subpoenaed the district attorney seeking discovery evidence regarding that relationship. Her client has filed for separation from Neuman after 22 years of marriage.
The prosecution in Neuman's case, acknowledging it possessed the requested materials, filed a protective order to shield it from Panitch's request. The district attorney's office recently secured search warrants for e-mails and phone records that link Neuman and Andrea Sneiderman, saying in an affidavit they may contain evidence regarding Rusty Sneiderman's death.
About the Author
A native Atlantan, Boone joined the AJC staff in 2007. He quickly carved out a niche covering crime stories, assuming the public safety beat in 2014. He's covered some of the biggest trials this decade, from Hemy Neuman to Ross Harris to Chip Olsen, the latter of which was featured on Season 7 of the AJC's award-winning "Breakdown" podcast.
