On a Saturday evening in March 2018, a fatal shooting shattered the peace in a restaurant on Springfield Avenue in Maplewood. The victim was 30-year-old Altariq A. Brown, a male from Livingston. The incident occurred at approximately 8:20 p.m. on March 24th, and he was pronounced dead at the scene just fifteen minutes later. The Maplewood Police Department and the Essex County Prosecutor's Office Homicide/Major Crimes Task Force immediately began an investigation into the shooting.
In
the days following the tragic event, authorities had not identified any suspects, and no arrests had been made. The investigation was described as active and ongoing as law enforcement officials worked to piece together the circumstances that led to the deadly encounter. Friends of Brown revealed that he was a self-published author who had recently held a book signing for his novel.
Despite the ongoing investigation by the Essex County Prosecutor's Office, the case grew cold. As months turned into more than a year, there were no public updates regarding the identification or apprehension of any suspects. The shooting was part of a violent weekend in New Jersey, leaving a community searching for answers and a family grappling with a loss for which no one had been held accountable. The case officially remains unsolved, with no arrests made and no suspects publicly named.
