Illinois man could soon be free after his 26-year sentence for murder was overturned when a key witness admitted to making up the entire story

• Mario Casciaro was arrested in 2010 for the 2002 murder of Brian Carrick, and charged with first degree murder by intimidation
• The now 31-year-old from Johnsburg, Illinois, was said to have had his friend Shane Lamb fight Carrick over drug money he owed him
• Lamb has now said he lied at the urging of prosecutors about what happened
• Furthermore, the fingerprint of another man, Rob Render, was found in Carrick's blood splatter 

By Dailymail.com Reporter

Published: 16:24 EST, 18 September 2015 | Updated: 19:01 EST, 18 September 2015

A man serving 26 years for a murder he claims he did not commit has had his conviction overturned. 

Mario Casciaro was convicted of murder in the the killing of his teenage grocery store co-worker Brian Carrick.

However, a ruling by the 2nd District Appellate Court, that prosecutors failed to prove Casciaro's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, means Casciaro could soon be walking free. 

Casciaro, of Johnsburg, Illinois, was convicted last year in the 2002 killing, even though a body was never found and the prosecution admitted he never laid a finger on his victim. 

Scroll down for video 

Overturned: Mario Casciaro, once convicted of first-degree murder, could now walk free after the Illinois Appellate Court overturned his verdict. He was serving 26 years in prison for the murder of Brian Carrick

Carrick (left) was last seen on December 20, 2002, and in 2010 Casciaro (right) was charged with his death

The case remained cold for many years before Casciaro was arrested and charged in 2010. 

Casciaro, who is now 32, was even tried twice before prosecutors won a conviction on the rarely used charge of first-degree murder by intimidation.

'This is the best day of my life,' said Casciaro's sister Julia Muell to the Chicago Tribune. 'We've known he is innocent from day one, we just needed the world to know. We are just so happy that the world knows now.'

The appeals court ruling paves the way for Casciaro to be released from prison although there may still be some obstacles ahead as the state is likely to appeal the decision to the Illinois Supreme Court.

Prosecutors maintain that Casciaro was guilty because he was responsible for the actions of another man, Shane Lamb.

Change: A ruling by the 2nd District Appellate Court reversed the verdict because evidence was so lacking and improbable that the state failed to prove Casciaro’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt

Lamb, who was another grocery store co-worker, testified during both trials that he confronted Carrick in a walk-in cooler at the store. 

'The state invested everything in Lamb by granting him complete immunity, but Lamb failed to supply any evidence that defendant used him to threaten Carrick,' the appeals judge wrote.

 'Lamb's unequivocal testimony that defendant did not ask or tell him to threaten Carrick simply cannot be twisted to support the inference that defendant used Lamb to threaten Carrick.'

Casciaro and Carrick were both employees at Val's Grocery, the last place Carrick was ever seen alive on December 20, 2002.

His blood was found in the produce cooler at the grocery store, but no one was ever arrested or charged with his murder or disappearance.

Then, a story began to circulate that Casciaro was dealing drugs, and had Carrick working for him.

People started to say he had the boy killed over a debt of $400 to $500, including Carrick's father.

At this point the FBI was also investigating the death, but found no truth to any of these rumors.

Everything changed however in 2010, when Shane Lamb, who also worked with the boys at Val's, was arrested on cocaine charges. 

A jury found Casciaro, 32, (pictured_ guilty of murdering 17-year-old Brian Carrick. Carrick last was seen Dec. 20, 2002, at the grocery store where he worked, which also was owned by Casciaro’s parents. Carrick’s body never was found, and he is presumed dead 

End of the road: After two jury trials – the first ended in a mistrial on an 11-to-1 hung jury – Casciaro was sentenced Nov. 14, 2013, to 26 years in prison

He told prosecutor Michael Combs that Carrick did owe Casciaro money and he was called in to 'take care of him.'

Lamb says he punched the 17-year-old Carrick and knocked him out, killing him.

Casciaro then said he would take care of the body.

And so Casciaro was charged with first-degree murder with intimidation, while Lamb received no charges as part of his plea bargain and a reduced sentence for his cocaine charge.

Lamb, a key witness in the case then came out saying he lied and was coerced by Combs. 

'I was following what [Combs] wanted me to say. They just wanted to close the case,' Lamb said.

He also claimed that Combs was determined to charge one of the two boys with murder.

'I was like, "If you, you know, you brought me into this. My family doesn’t have money to pay for a lawyer. They don’t have money to bond me out like yours does."' Lamb said he told Casciaro. “ 

Old video shows Shane Lamb speaking with prosecutor Michael Combs. Lamb was granted full immunity from murder charges for his testimony against Casciaro. He later recanted the entire story in a signed affidavit and on a national news program that aired a program about the case. He said prosecutors told him to lie

Lamb now says he lied on the stand, and that Combs coerced him. Lamb has a history of violence, with a trip to a juvenile correctional facility at 14 for attempted murder

Reason to smile: Casciaro could be released from prison immediately, however prosecutors could still file an appeal to have the ruling overturned

'You know, I’m like, "They were trying to indict me for murder," and I’m like, "I didn’t have money to fight this case."'

Lamb, however, is not who Zellner thinks killed Carrick, but rather another young man working at the store with the boys - Rob Render. 

Render's fingerprint was found in Carrick's blood splatter and one store employee, Jacob Kepple, says he saw the two boys fighting over drug money on the night he died.

'Brian had told Rob, "If you don't have it by Friday, it's 60,”' Kepple recalled.

'And to me, that meant, "If you don't have the $30 you owe me for weed by Friday, then it's double.”' 

Render was also missing for almost two hours that night, between 5 pm and 7 pm, which is when Carrick disappeared. 

And there's more.

An employee later found underwear soiled with blood hidden in the ceiling of one of the store's bathrooms, underwear that was never tested for DNA or admitted as evidence in the trial.

Zellner is convinced that DNA will prove Render was the killer.

Render did not testify in the first trial, and died of a heroin overdose before Casciaro's second trial.

His first trial ended in a hung jury.

'The only person that really dislikes Brian Carrick is Render. The only person … that owes money to Brian Carrick is Render,' Zellner said. 

'The only person who's ever described wanting to jump him with a weapon is Render, and the only person in that back hallway is Render.'

Comments (46)

Share what you think

• Newest
• Oldest
• Best rated
• Worst rated

 View all

The comments below have not been moderated.

 View all

The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.

Add your comment

Enter your comment

By posting your comment you agree to our house rules.

Submit Comment Clear

Who is this week's top commenter? Find out now