On a Sunday evening in March of 2019, a burst of violence shattered the ordinary atmosphere of a Chinese restaurant in Newark, New Jersey, claiming the life of 18-year-old Deante Barr. The young man, a resident of Newark, was inside the establishment located on the 900-block of South Orange Avenue at approximately 9 p.m. on March 17th when he was struck by gunfire.
Emergency services transported him to University Hospital, but his injuries proved fatal, and he was pronounced dead later that night.
The Essex County Prosecutor's Office, in conjunction with the Newark Police Department, immediately launched an investigation into the shooting. Detectives from the Homicide/Major Crimes Task Force began piecing together the events of that evening. In the days following the incident, authorities reached out to the public for assistance, a common practice in such investigations. They released a photograph of a man they identified as a 'person of interest' and asked for help in identifying him.
Despite the circulation of the person of interest's photograph and public appeals for information, the investigation into Deante Barr's death has not resulted in any publicly announced arrests. The case remains an open and active investigation under the purview of the Essex County Prosecutor's Office. Information regarding a specific suspect or suspects has not been released to the public, and the circumstances surrounding the motive for the shooting remain unclear from available online sources. The request for public assistance in identifying the person of interest was the last significant update provided by law enforcement in the initial stages of the investigation.
