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TagsJeffrey Ayers, 21, was found guilty in June of robbing and slaying Quenting Scott Lacewell of Newark. Ayers was convicted on all counts including: murder, felony murder, conspiracy to commit robbery, robbery, and weapons offenses.
According to Essex County Assistant Prosecutor Roger Imhof, who tried the case, on February 28, 2007, Quenting Scott Lacewell, had gone to Bruce Street that evening to buy drugs.
After making the purchase, the victim was robbed by a man wearing a black hoodie in an ally. As he broke free and ran down 15th Avenue, he was shot multiple times and finally collapsed on Springfield Avenue in Newark. Detectives from the Essex County Prosecutor's Homicide Squad and Newark Police Department arrested Ayers six days later. Two witnesses testified that Ayers was the killer.A female friend of Ayers also testified at trial that she was in possession of the victim's cell phone that she received from the defendant soon after the murder.
Willie Rowe, a former East Orange police officer, who was off-duty at the time, also testified that he found the victim on Springfield Avenue that night severely wounded. Rowe stopped a bystander nearby and told him to call 911. During his dying declaration, the victim is heard on the 911 tape stating that the son of his friend Albarr Edrington had shot him.
Detectives developed information that Edrington was at the scene but not the shooter.
Dow praised the witnesses for coming forward and participating with police to positively identify the defendant.
In addition, Dow commended Lt. Steven Roberts of the Essex County Prosecutor's Homicide Squad and Detective Richard Warren from the Newark Police Department's Homicide Squad with the investigation. Dow also praised Detectives Robert Parsons and Thomas Sheehan of the Essex County Prosecutor's Crime Scene Unit for the investigation.