A partner of a prominent D.C. law firm and his lover were indicted on obstruction of justice charges in the investigation into the slaying a young lawyer in their Dupont Circle area town house two years ago.
The indictment of Joe Price, a former partner of Arent Fox, and his domestic partner Victor Zaborsky comes three weeks after a third roommate Dylan Ward was arrested in Miami Shores, Fla., on the same charges. All three men were indicted Wednesday and face a maximum of 30 years in prison if convicted, prosecutors said.
Price, 37, a partner with Arent Fox, was arraigned in D.C. Superior Court Thursday afternoon, wearing a dark gray suit, a collarless black knit shirt and designer shoes. Price stood silently with his wrists handcuffed behind his back and his ankles in silver shackles and his attorney Brian Grimm and prosecutor Glenn Kirschner made their arguments before Magistrate Judge Diana Harris Epps out of the earshot of the public.
Zaborsky, who is expected to be arraigned as early as this afternoon, watched from the gallery surrounded by nearly a dozen friends.
In the end, Epps agreed with the government and ordered Price held on a $100,000 bond. Price will return to the courtroom this morning to argue for a lesser bond.
Since the beginning, police have questioned the roommates’ story that a burglar sneaked into their $1.2 million home at 1509 Swann St., grabbed a knife from the kitchen, went back upstairs and stabbed Wone three times before fleeing.
In charging documents, police said Wone was drugged, sexually assaulted and fatally stabbed. Police said they found no evidence that Wone acted to defend himself from the knife attack which cleanly punctured his torso. Police say they found very little blood, no signs of forced entry, and nothing was out of place or missing.
As further evidence, police listed a number of items found at in Ward’s bedroom used to inflict pain on others for sexual gratification, including racks, shackles, metal and leather collars, mouth gags, black spandex hoods, electrical shock device and various books on sadomasochistic practices.
In a statement, released through her attorney, Wone’s widow, Katherine Wone, said the family would do everything in its power to ensure that those responsible for his murder and cover-up were brought to justice.
“Robert was a great man who did not deserve this,” Wone attorney Benjamin J. Razi said.
