NEWARK, N.J. – Three Essex County, New Jersey, men have been charged with illegally possessing a firearm and ammunition in connection with a May 14, 2021 shooting, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig announced.
Gilbert Bermudez, aka “Troub,” 28; Brian Elijah Mitchell, aka “Slash,” 31; and Jaahan Mitchell, 32, all of Newark, are each charged by criminal complaint with one count of possessing a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon. Brian Mitchell made his initial appearance today by videoconference before U.S. Magistrate Judge Leda Dunn Wettre, and was detained. Bermudez’s initial appearance is expected to be scheduled later this week. Jaahan Mitchell remains at large.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
On May 14, 2021, members of the Newark Police Department were dispatched to the Pennington Court housing complex in Newark on a report of shots fired. Officers reviewed surveillance videos from cameras located near the shooting, which showed Bermudez and Brian Mitchell, together with another man, shooting at a fourth man, who had shot into the courtyard of the housing complex. The footage also showed that the third shooter dropped a cellular phone as he fled from the scene of the shooting. A lawful search of the cellular phone showed that the phone belonged to Jaahan Mitchell.
Bermudez was arrested on May 20, 2021. During a lawful search of Bermudez’s residence, officers recovered a 9mm semiautomatic handgun, loaded with nine rounds of ammunition. Ballistics testing determined that six of the 9mm shell casings found at the crime scene were discharged from the firearm found in Bermudez’s residence.
The count of possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Acting U.S. Attorney Honig credited officers of the Newark Police Department, under the direction of Public Safety Director Brian O’Hara; members of the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II; the Essex County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Armando B. Fontoura; and special agents and task force officers with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Newark Division, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Craig B. Kailimai, with the investigation leading to the charges.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Francesca Liquori, of the Organized Crime and Gangs Unit, and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Stacey E. Zyriek Enriquez, of the Violent Crimes Unit.
The charges and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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