Shiquan D. Bellamy

Serial Killer

Shiquan D. Bellamy – Five Killings in Jersey City

Shiquan D. Bellamy was a Jersey City, New Jersey, murderer connected to the deaths of five people during a remarkably concentrated period of violence in 2010. Bellamy was only 19 years old when authorities linked him to three separate homicide incidents occurring between February 2 and April 4, 2010. Although he is sometimes categorized as a serial killer, contemporary investigators and news reports more commonly described the murders as a killing spree because all five victims were killed within approximately two months. Legally, Bellamy was convicted of murdering two victims and pleaded guilty to aggravated manslaughter charges arising from the deaths of three others.

The February 2010 Double Homicide

The first killings connected to Bellamy occurred during the early morning hours of February 2, 2010, in Jersey City. The victims were cousins Lester Maurice "Bleek" Thompson, 26, and Mileak Richardson, 17. Police discovered Thompson and Richardson lying face down on a sidewalk along Woodlawn Avenue shortly before 4:00 a.m. Both had suffered fatal gunshot wounds. Investigators quickly concluded that the shootings did not appear random and believed that the victims had deliberately been targeted. Prosecutors later alleged that Bellamy participated in setting up Thompson and Richardson for a robbery. Cash, cellular phones and drugs were reportedly among the property targeted during the crime. Bellamy was charged along with Hakeem Lester and Ronald Lawrence in connection with the robbery and deaths. Darmelia Lawrence, Ronald Lawrence's sister, was also later implicated in crimes involving Bellamy and would become an important prosecution witness. The Richardson and Thompson investigation eventually became significant for another reason. When Bellamy was linked to later murders, detectives began comparing the cases and examining his associates, telephone records and other evidence. The February double homicide became part of a much larger investigation into a succession of killings that had occurred in Jersey City over only a few weeks.

The Killing of Lamonte Wright

On March 27, 2010, Lamonte Wright was killed in Jersey City in an attack that prosecutors described as strikingly senseless. Wright was walking his girlfriend to her car in the vicinity of Clerk Street and Myrtle Avenue when he was shot from behind with a shotgun. Contemporary authorities reported that there had been no robbery and no argument between Wright and Bellamy. Prosecutors described Wright as essentially a stranger to Bellamy. The State's allegation was that Bellamy approached Wright from behind and fired the shotgun into his back. When Bellamy later resolved the criminal charges associated with Wright's death, however, he pleaded guilty to an amended charge of aggravated manslaughter rather than murder. In later court proceedings concerning that plea, Bellamy maintained that the shotgun had discharged accidentally while he was carrying it on a public street. By accepting the plea, he admitted criminal responsibility for Wright's death even though the final conviction did not require the State to prove intentional murder at trial. ...

Confirmed Victims: (5)

Mileak Richardson Age: (17), Date of Death: 2010-02-02

Judge orders life behind bars for killer of engaged Jersey City couple