A career criminal allegedly killed a newlywed couple during a tense bar robbery after the bartender threatened to call the police and tried to shake the gun out of his hand, according to court documents.
According to a probable cause affidavit obtained by Fox News Digital, Thomas Root Jr. barged into the Sports Page Bar in Elkhorn, Wisconsin, just after midnight on February 1st and fell on bartender Gina Weingart. He is said to have instructed him to do so.
She threatened to call the police and “I slammed the gun down and it exploded.” Her affidavit states: Root Jr. then told police that Weingart collapsed and went “limp.”
When she collapsed, Root Jr. shot her husband, Emerson, and stole between $120 and $140 from the cash register, the affidavit alleges. When she saw Emerson still alive, she left and followed the anonymous witness, at which point she allegedly shot him again.
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Emerson and Gina Weingart were shot to death inside a sports bar in Elkhorn, Wisconsin. (FOX 6 Milwaukee)
As a convicted felon, Thomas Root Jr. was charged with two counts of first-degree intentional homicide by use of a dangerous weapon, armed robbery, and possession of a firearm. His lawyer said he maintains his innocence. (Elkhorn Police Department)
The only people in the bar at the time were a 57-year-old career criminal, a newlywed couple, and an anonymous witness. Gina and Emerson died at the scene, but the witness ran off while Root Jr. fired “a couple of shots,” according to the affidavit.
“Witnesses said Rout brandished a handgun and pointed the gun at the bartender, Gina, ordering her to stop moving,” Elkhorn Police said in a statement. “Witnesses said they instinctively got up from their barstools, and Raut pointed a gun at them and ordered them to stay still.”
“The witness stated that they sat down, then Mr. Rout fired a gun at Gina, and the witness stated that he immediately ran out the door and called 911 after leaving the scene.”
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When detectives asked Root Jr. why he committed the violent robbery, he said, “Probably for the money,” according to the affidavit.
Root Jr.’s attorney, Russal Jones, told Fox News Digital that Root Jr. “maintains the presumption of innocence” and intends to plead not guilty.
“The criminal complaint is written by the district attorney and is a summary of the facts by the district attorney,” Jones said. “All evidence referred to, including statements attributed to my client, has not been considered for admissibility or reliability…Judgement should be reserved until the evidence is presented, and Judgment should be reserved until further notice.”
Gina flashes a new engagement ring after Emerson proposes in October 2021. The two got married last summer. (Emerson Weingart/Facebook)
Emerson and Gina Weingart have been “inseparable” since they started dating in 2020. The couple married in June 2023 and was killed in a shooting at a bar a week ago. (Emerson Weingart/Facebook)
Root Jr. allegedly tried to dump the gun and ammunition at a gas station, where detectives found them in a bag in a trash can, according to the affidavit.
He was arrested at approximately 3:20 a.m. on February 4, three days after the fatal robbery, during a traffic stop on Interstate 43 in the town of Lafayette, Wisconsin, less than 10 miles from the scene.
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At the time of his arrest, he was being held on an unrelated matter violating the terms of his August 2020 parole.
According to court documents, Root Jr. has been convicted of multiple felonies, including robbery and arson. In November 2008, he punched an inmate.
Emerson and Gina Weingart at Lambeau Field, home of their beloved NFL team, the Green Bay Packers. (Gina Weingart/Facebook)
Young lives taken ‘by an act of cowardice’
Gina worked at a bar and the couple were regulars at the place they loved to hang out. It was the same place they were shot.
The family posted on Facebook that it was a “senseless bar robbery” that took a life too soon.
“Mrs. Emerson would go to bars and hang out after work, and Gina would work late into the night to support her. They had been married for only nine months, and He just got married in the summer,” his cousin Brittany Weingart said on Facebook. post.
Since they first started dating in 2020, they have been flooded with social media posts and comments praising the couple for being “inseparable,” and they tied the knot in June last year.
Gina and Emerson Weingart walk through Virgin Ghat during their June 2023 wedding. (Gina Weingart/.Facebook)
The bar’s owner posted a heartfelt message on Facebook praising the young couple, calling the shooting an “act of cowardice” and replacing it with a photo of Gina and Emerson surrounded by friends and family.
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“We want to talk about two lives that were tragically taken from us far too soon. Our bartender Gina and her husband Emerson are both dear friends of ours,” the bar said. the owner posted on Facebook.
“Their lives have only just begun and on behalf of the entire Sports Page family I want to say that we are completely devastated by this event. This has shaken us all to the core. It is a despicable act of violence.”
fox news digital Stephanie Price Contributed to this story.
