On the evening of June 25, 2015, in Elizabeth, New Jersey, 29-year-old Jamil Payne, a male, was found lying in the middle of South Park Street, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Police responded to reports of gunfire in the area of Sixth Street and South Park Street shortly after 9:50 p.m. and discovered Payne, who was pronounced dead at the scene.
His tragic death was part of a violent and seemingly random shooting spree that unfolded across the city on that single day, leaving two other men dead and another seriously injured.
The ensuing investigation quickly connected Payne's murder to the other shootings that occurred on June 25th. Authorities determined that the same. 38-caliber revolver was used in all the incidents. The extensive investigation, involving multiple law enforcement agencies, identified 22-year-old Todd West of Elizabeth as the sole person responsible for the day's bloodshed. Further investigation also linked West to the fatal shooting of his cousin, Michael Thompkins, a month earlier on May 18, 2015.
An arrest warrant for the murder of Jamil Payne was issued for Todd West on July 2, 2015, but by then he had already fled the state, prompting an intensive manhunt. West was ultimately apprehended in Allentown, Pennsylvania, on July 6, 2015, where he was also a suspect in additional homicides. Following his capture, West was charged with the murders of Jamil Payne, Dennis Vega, and Kelvin Nelson, as well as the attempted murder of Richard Marte, all stemming from the events of June 25th. He was also charged with the murder of his cousin. After facing charges in Pennsylvania for three murders committed there, for which he received three consecutive life sentences, West was indicted in New Jersey for the four murders and one attempted murder he committed in Elizabeth.
