Five Gang Members Charged In 2 Jersey City Killings: Authorities

HUDSON COUNTY, NJ — Federal prosecutors said last week that five "alleged members and associates of a neighborhood-based Jersey City gang" were charged Friday for their roles in two separate gang-related shootings in 2020, one of which resulted in the death of a 17-year-old girl who was a bystander.

The other shooting resulted in the death of a young man whom prosecutors say was a member of a rival gang.

U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said the five men were charged with murder in addition to other crimes. One of the charges, murder in aid of racketeering activity, carries a mandatory punishment of death or life in prison.

Prosecutors said that five men — Shaquan Rush, Darby Shirden, Jeremy Perez, Devon Tutten, and Tyree Witherspoon — are "associated" with a street gang that operates in the area of Rutgers Avenue and Triangle Park.

Prosecutors said a Rutgers Avenue gang member was murdered on March 31, 2020. As a result, on the next day — April 1 — three men (identified by prosecutors as Rush, Shirden, and Perez) "traveled to the territory" of rival gang members and opened fire on a group on the street.

A man in his early 20s "associated" with the Salem Lafayette street gang was shot, they say, and a 17-year-old girl who was walking down the street was shot and killed.

On April 4, 2020, in retaliation for a different attempted shooting that occurred the day before, two men, Tutten and Witherspoon, traveled to the territory of rival gang members who associate with Wilkinson Avenue, prosecutors allege. Prosecutors say the pair opened fire on a group of people on the street.

"An individual associated with the Wilkinson street gang was shot in the head and pronounced dead shortly thereafter," prosecutors say.

The charges are:

Shaquan Rush, 21, Darby Shirden, 21, and Jeremy Perez, 23, all of Jersey City, are each charged by complaint with one count of murder in aid of racketeering, one count of attempted murder in aid of racketeering, and two counts of discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.

Devon Tutten, 24, and Tyree Witherspoon, 29, both of Jersey City, are also each charged with one count of murder in aid of racketeering and one count of discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.

The defendants will make their initial appearances at a date to be determined, prosecutors said.

The charge of murder in aid of racketeering activity carries a mandatory punishment of death or
life in prison without the possibility of parole, prosecutors said.

For the charges for discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, all five defendants face mandatory minimum terms of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life.

Longtime Issue

Law enforcement officials have said over the years that revenge killings by Jersey City gangs have been an ongoing problem for decades.

Last month, a man admitted in court to his role an attempted gang shooting injured a 12-year-old bystander. READ MORE: Jersey City Man Admits Gang Shooting That Injured 12-Year-Old

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