Mom Of Slain Maplewood Teen Moussa Fofana 'Disappointed' Over Plea: Reports

MAPLEWOOD, NJ — Hawa Fofana, the mother of Maplewood teen Moussa Fofana, who was shot to death at a school athletic field the night of June 6, 2021, told news outlets this week that she has heard that the person charged with his death may only get a 15-year sentence.

"I was very disappointed and I was very sad," she told NBC News on Wednesday, making similar comments in a story in Village Green. "I need him to be life in prison because my life, and my family life, will never be the same."

Maplewood officers were called to the scene in the area of Underhill Field on Garfield Place in Maplewood at approximately 9:38 p.m. on Sunday, June 6, where they found Fofana, 18, and another male with gunshot wounds.

Fofana was pronounced dead at the scene. The second teen was treated at an area hospital for a non-life-threatening gunshot wound. Friends said Fofana and the friend may have been crossing through the field to go watch a boxing match.

Two months later, in August of 2021, Yohan Hernandez, 20, of Newark was charged with murder, aggravated assault, unlawful possession of a weapon, and possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose.

On Thursday, Robert Florida, the spokesperson for the Essex County Prosecutor's Office, said the next court hearing for the State v. Yohan Hernandez is Sept. 1 9:30 a.m., before the Honorable Ronald D. Wigler.

However, he would not elaborate on the reason for the hearing or share details of the plea discussions.

A reward fund for information into Fofana's death reached $50,000 by the time Hernandez was captured a year ago.

No motive in the murder has been released.

Fofana was a soccer player and junior at Columbia High School in Maplewood.

At a rally last summer, when the killer was still at large, Hawa Fofana said, "We’re here today because this beautiful boy has passed on and we have not had justice since. We want justice for this beautiful boy. I walk around the house trying to put this puzzle together. Maplewood, South Orange, I need everybody to put this puzzle [together] for me. This is a puzzle that one parent cannot build."

Schools Superintendent Ronald Taylor said last year, "As a district, our hearts are still heavy at the loss of a young man's life cut far too short, it is unimaginable that we would lose one of our very own to such a senseless act of violence."

Read prior reporting here. Send news tips and information to Maplewood Patch here.