On the evening of July 8, 2021, a report of a motor vehicle crash at the intersection of Highland Terrace and Grove Street in Irvington, New Jersey, led police to a grim discovery. Arriving at the scene, officers found 38-year-old Tariq Patterson, a Black male resident of Irvington, inside a vehicle, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. He was rushed to University Hospital in Newark, but his injuries proved fatal, and he was pronounced dead at 8:25 p.m.
The Essex County Prosecutor's
Office Homicide/Major Crimes Task Force, in conjunction with the Irvington Police Department, immediately launched an investigation into the fatal shooting. For months, the case remained under active investigation with authorities appealing to the public for any information that might lead to an arrest. The circumstances surrounding the shooting were not immediately clear, leaving a community searching for answers.
After nearly three months of investigation, a breakthrough was made. On October 1, 2021, authorities apprehended a suspect, Altariq Thomas. He was subsequently charged with murder, conspiracy, and several weapons offenses in connection with Patterson's death. Later that month, Thomas was arraigned in an Essex County courtroom where he pleaded not guilty to the charges brought against him.
