The Franklin Reporter & Advocate Eight Villages, One Community
Three juveniles – two from Franklin and one from New Brunswick – have been charged in connection with the May 11 murder of a North Brunswick cabbie in the township.
A township 14-year-old and 13-year-old and New Brunswick 13-year-old were charged on May 12 and were transported to the Middlesex County Youth Detention Center in North Brunswick to await a Family Court appearance, according to a press release from the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office.
The three were intending to rob the cabbie – 57-year-old Kofi Addo – when one of them fired a gun while he was operating the cab near Rose Street and Sydney Place, according to the press release.
An autopsy performed by the New Jersey Northern Regional Medical Examiner determined that Addo died from a gunshot to his head, the release said.
The township 14-year-old and the New Brunswick 13-year-old face the following charges:
- Murder, 1st degree
- Felony Murder, 1st degree
- Conspiracy to Commit Murder, 1st degree
- Robbery, 1st degree
- Conspiracy to Commit Robbery, 2nd degree
- Unlawful Possession of a Weapon, 2nd degree
- Possession of a Weapon for an Unlawful Purpose, 2nd degree
- Possession of a Firearm by a Minor, 4th degree
The township 13-year-old was charged with 1st Degree Robbery and 2nd Degree Conspiracy to Commit Robbery, according to the release.
The youths were located in Somerset and New Brunswick, and then brought to the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office in Somerville, where they were charged, according to the release.
Township police received a 9-1-1 call reporting a shooting at about 9:56 p.m. May 11. The responding officers found Addo in the cab, which had crashed into a car parked in a driveway on Sydney Place.
Addo was transported to a nearby trauma center, where he was pronounced dead.
Police were told that the three suspects fled after the gunshot, according to the release.
Detectives from the Franklin Township Police Department along with the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit, the Crime Scene Investigations Unit, Somerset County Sheriff’s Office K-9 Unit, and Warren Township Police K-9 Unit responded to the scene to conduct the investigation, according to the release.
Also assisting in the investigation were the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office, the Middlesex County SWAT team, the New Brunswick Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Franklin Resident Office, according to the release.
Anyone with information on the shooting is asked to contact the Somerset County Prosecutors Office Major Crimes Unit at (908) 231-7100 or the Franklin Township Police Department at (732) 873-5533 or via the STOPit app. The STOPit app allows citizens to provide anonymous reports including videos and photos. STOPit can be downloaded to your smart phone for free at the Google Play Store or Apple App Store, access code: SOMERSETNJ. Information can also be provided through the Somerset County Crime Stoppers’ Tip Line at 1-888-577-TIPS (8477). All anonymous STOPit reports, and Crime Stopper tips will be kept confidential.
