West Orange Man Shot In Bridgewater, Dies: Prosecutor

WEST ORANGE, NJ — A pair of New Jersey men were arrested – and one charged with murder – after a West Orange man was shot in Bridgewater on Saturday night, authorities said.

On Monday, the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office released details about the shooting, which involved the victim, Roobino Philemon, 30, of West Orange.

According to prosecutors, the shooting took place after Philemon and an unnamed person arrived at a birthday party at a Bayberry Road home. When the homeowner told them they weren’t welcome, the pair got into their car and left. However, they stopped on Foothill Road near the intersection of Bayberry Road.

The homeowner then walked up to the car and again told them to leave, prosecutors said.

At that point, while the car was still on Foothill Road, a man later identified as Hafeez A. Brown, 33, of Linden, walked up to the rear of the vehicle and fired multiple rounds, hitting Philemon once, prosecutors said.

Philemon, who was behind the wheel, then drove down Foothill Road, telling his passenger that he’d just been shot. They stopped the car to switch places, with Philemon getting into the back seat and the new driver calling 9-1-1, prosecutors said.

On their way to the hospital, the pair stopped the car for police on Route 22 East near Grove Street in Bridgewater at 11:53 p.m. The officers, who had received a 9-1-1 call about a person suffering from gunshot wound, then immediately started life-saving measures while waiting for emergency medical personnel to arrive.

Philemon was transported to a nearby trauma center, where he was pronounced deceased, authorities said.

Bridgewater police responded to the Bayberry Road home where the shooting took place, making contact with “numerous” people leaving the premises. After seeing that there were also people inside the home, officers put out a call for mutual assistance, prosecutors stated.

Responding agencies, including the Somerset County SWAT, formed a perimeter and issued a brief shelter-in-place for local residents, prosecutors said.

The five occupants in the home – two adult females and three adult males, including Brown and George A. Bease, 32, of Bridgewater – complied with police and exited the home without incident, prosecutors said.

After obtaining a search warrant, police found two guns, ammunition and an unspecified amount of marijuana inside the home.

Authorities charged Brown with first-degree murder, second-degree possession of a firearm, and second-degree unlawful possession of firearm.

Authorities charged Bease with second-degree possession of a firearm while in the course of committing a CDS offense.

Brown and Bease were lodged at the Somerset County Jail pending a detention hearing.

The New Jersey Regional Medical Examiner’s Office will perform an autopsy to determine the cause and manner of death. An investigation is ongoing, prosecutors said. Anyone with information can contact the Bridgewater Police Department at (908) 722-4111, the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit (908) 231-7100, or via the STOPit app.

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