A recent Nigerian immigrant and amateur photographer, Rasheed “OJ” Olabode, a 27-year-old male, was killed in Newark, New Jersey, on the morning of April 26, 2018. While running errands with two friends, Olabode, urgently needing a restroom and finding none nearby, stopped to urinate behind his vehicle on the 700 block of South 20th Street. This act enraged a local resident, Christopher Poole, aged 26 at the time.
Incensed by what he witnessed, Poole went into his house across the
street and returned with a gun. As his friends watched from the car, Olabode pleaded for his life. Despite his pleas, Poole shot him in the chest at point-blank range. After Poole walked away, the wounded Olabode managed to run back to his friends' car. They quickly drove away and flagged down a police officer on South 18th Street. An ambulance was called, but Olabode was pronounced dead at the hospital.
Following a trial, an Essex County jury convicted Christopher Poole of murder, unlawful possession of a weapon, and possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose. Poole, who had four prior felony convictions and was identified as a member of the Bloods street gang, showed no remorse during the proceedings. In February 2020, a Superior Court judge sentenced Poole to life in prison for the murder. Under the terms of his sentence, he must serve a minimum of 63 years before becoming eligible for parole.
