Pine Bush resident Walter Post, Jr., 26, was convicted on the murder of 29-year-old Michael Hankins, of Shawangunk, at the Ulster County Court on July 15.

Post pled guilty to second degree murder after gunning down Hankins on a secluded road in January, according to the Ulster County District Attorney’s Office (UCDA). Post entered his plea before Hankins’ mother, sister, and other family members.

On January 11, the court revealed that Post stalked his ex-girlfriend to her home and found that Hankins was visiting her at the time. Post believed that Hankins was “the new man in his ex-girlfriend’s life” and disabled his car, according to the UCDA. When Hankins left the home after 1 a.m., he stopped a short distance away from the home and Post fired into Hankins with a shotgun at close range, several times. Due to the secluded location of his body, Hankins was not discovered for several hours.

In the early morning, the crime scene was blocked off with yellow tape, as New York State Troopers interviewed neighbors and wheeled away a black body bag from sight. Residents of Vinegar Hill Road described their neighborhood as a peaceful place to live, with families raising children beneath towering pine trees in the now snow-caked landscape.

“It’s pretty scary because it’s where we live,” said Joanne Cerniglia back in January. She had lived in the area for 17 years. “It’s not something you anticipate happening in your neighborhood.”

After the shooting, Post returned to his ex-girlfriend’s home and told her what he had done, the press release revealed. Later that morning, Post told his mother and others that he had killed someone, and law enforcement officials were called. After noticing the police activity around his Pine Bush home, later that morning, Post surrendered himself without incident and was taken into custody. He was later charged with murder and was remanded to Ulster County Jail where he has remained since his arrest. Post waived his rights to pretrial hearings and his rights to appeal. He is scheduled to be sentenced on September 16, 2022.

This case was investigated by members of the New York State Police and the Forensic Investigation Unit of Middletown. The case is being handled by Chief Assistant District Attorney Emmanuel Nneji. The defendant is being represented by attorney Tom Melanson, of Kingston.