In the late evening hours of May 11, 2016, in Trenton, New Jersey, a young man's life was cut short in a burst of violence that would lead to the arrest of two teenagers. Ricardo Montalvan Jr., a 23-year-old Hispanic male, was discovered in a silver Toyota Camry in a parking lot on Whittaker Avenue around 9:50 p.m., suffering from at least one gunshot wound.
Emergency services transported him to Capital Health Regional Medical Center, but his injuries proved fatal, and he was pronounced dead at 10:15 p.m.
The investigation into the shooting quickly pointed to two juvenile suspects. A 16-year-old, Divon Ray, was taken into custody at the scene of the crime. Approximately a week later, authorities, including the U.S. Marshals NY/NJ Regional Fugitive Task Force, located and arrested the second suspect, 17-year-old Zakeem Brown, at his mother's residence. Prosecutors would later state that the motive for the deadly encounter was a robbery gone wrong, with one of the teens allegedly telling police it was 'something to do.'
Both teenagers were charged with murder, felony murder, robbery, and weapons offenses. Despite their ages at the time of the incident, the gravity of the charges led to the decision to waive them up to be tried as adults. In April 2017, a Mercer County grand jury returned a five-count indictment against both Divon Ray, then 17, and Zakeem Brown, then 18, formally charging them with the murder of Ricardo Montalvan Jr. The case highlighted the persistent issue of gun violence in the community.
