In the early morning hours of November 22, 2014, the sound of multiple gunshots shattered the pre-dawn quiet on the 600 block of Chancellor Avenue in Irvington, New Jersey. When Irvington police officers arrived at the scene around 5:45 a.m., they discovered two young men who had been shot. One of the victims, a 20-year-old Black male named Shaquille Kirkland, was pronounced dead at the scene.
The other victim, also 20 years old and identified as Dashawn James, was rushed to University Hospital in Newark, where he succumbed to his injuries a short time later.
The investigation into the double homicide was undertaken by the Essex County Prosecutor's Office Homicide Task Force, which included detectives from the Irvington Police Department. Their efforts led to the identification of two suspects, 28-year-old Altariq Thomas and 24-year-old Aljumar Derrick, both residents of Irvington. On the morning of January 9, 2015, Irvington police officers arrested both Thomas and Derrick in Irvington.
Following their arrests, Altariq Thomas and Aljumar Derrick were charged with two counts of murder and multiple weapons offenses. They were subsequently held at the Essex County Correctional Facility in Newark. A judge set bail for both men at $1 million each.
