Teens Charged with Murdering Man, Wounding Bystander

Four 19-year-olds have been charged with murder in the shooting death of a city man Wednesday night, the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office said Thursday.

Cameron Drayton, 26, appears to have been deliberately targeted by the shooters, who gunned down Drayton as he stood outside a building on Isabella Avenue around 7 pm. He was pronounced dead at University Hospital less than an hour later.

A 53-year-old woman, who officials said was just a bystander, was also wounded but survived.

Police officers from Newark and East Orange, who were in the area participating in a joint agency border patrol at the time of the shooting, heard the gunshots and rushed to the scene , where they reportedly saw several men fleeing in a 2012 Dodge Charger.

The officers began chasing the vehicle and were later joined by the State Police. The chase ended when the Charger, which had been carjacked from Newark, crashed near Lyons and Elizabeth avenues. Several firearms were found in the car, officials said.

Arrested were Jerome Anderson of Newark, Kyle Teague of Newark, Percel Coston of Irvington and Rajee Stokes of Orange. All four men have been charged with murder, conspiracy to commit murder, aggravated assault, weapons offenses and receiving stolen property. Anderson has also been charged with Carjacking and Eluding.

“An innocent bystander was injured in this violent incident and the response by the Newark and East Orange officers likely prevented additional injuries,” Acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn Murray said