On the afternoon of December 27, 2018, in Hartford, Connecticut, 35-year-old Ross Stone of West Hartford was fatally shot in what became the city's 21st homicide of the year. The incident unfolded shortly after 4:30 p.m. in the vicinity of Garden Street and Pliny Street, where police were alerted to gunfire by the ShotSpotter system and numerous 911 calls.
Upon their arrival, officers discovered Stone unresponsive at the scene, having sustained a gunshot wound to his head.
A second victim, 25-year-old Elijah Adorno of Hartford, was found a block away with several gunshot wounds to his legs and stomach. It is believed that Adorno managed to flee the initial scene before collapsing. Both men were transported to St. Francis Hospital, where Stone was pronounced dead shortly after 5 p.m. Adorno underwent surgery and was listed in stable condition.
The investigation into the double shooting led Hartford Police to identify 29-year-old Abdul-Hakim Ali of East Hartford as the suspect. In a collaborative effort involving the Hartford Police's Vice, Intelligence, and Narcotics Unit, the U.S. Marshal's Violent Fugitive Task Force, and the FBI, Ali was taken into custody at a hotel in New London in the early hours of December 30, 2018.
Ali, who has a significant criminal history including previous convictions for criminal possession of a firearm and robbery, was charged with Murder, Assault in the 1st Degree, and Criminal Possession of a Firearm. He was held on a $1 million bond.
