Crime & Safety
East Brunswick Cops Nab Wanted Murder Suspect In Traffic Stop, Prosecutors Say
A traffic stop in East Brunswick helped crack the case of two cousins killed last month, prosecutors say.
EAST BRUNSWICK, NJ — A routine traffic stop by East Brunswick police led to the arrest of a murder suspect wanted in the fatal shooting of two cousins in Bergen County, prosecutors said.
East Brunswick police pulled over Lydell Mercedes, 24, of Linden, during a routine traffic stop and discovered an active warrant for his arrest, according to the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office. He was taken into custody and transported to the Bergen County Jail.
Mercedes was one of four people charged in connection with the fatal shootings of Brian Lockett, 28, of North Arlington, and Ezequiel Aquino, 29, of Newark, who were found with gunshot wounds on July 19 at the corner of Ridge Road and Belleville Turnpike in North Arlington, prosecutors said. Both men were pronounced dead at University Hospital in Newark.
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Mercedes and Leibys Mercedes, 26, of Linden, were charged with first-degree murder and weapons offenses. An investigation determined that Leibys Mercedes was the shooter, while the other three suspects were involved in an altercation that preceded the shooting, prosecutors said.
Altray Brown, 33, of Irvington, and Yolanda Montgomery, 30, of Newark, were also charged in connection with the case. Prosecutors said the two fled the scene in a vehicle carrying two children under age 5 who were not secured in car seats, leading to additional charges of endangering the welfare of a child.
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Brown and Montgomery were arrested July 22 during a search warrant executed at a home in Plainfield. They made their first court appearances last Thursday and were ordered released, prosecutors said.
Leibys Mercedes was arrested in Newark on Monday, Aug. 3, and taken to the Bergen County Jail as well, prosecutors said.
According to prosecutors, a fight broke out during a custody exchange involving a child, and none of the four suspects reported the shooting to law enforcement, leaving both victims injured at the scene.
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