Two men have been arrested and charged in connection with the June murder of an Ocean County resident in Asbury Park, Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Lori Linskey announced on Monday.

Shakri A. Prince, 29, and Jaszhark A. Rogers, 35, both of Asbury Park, have each been charged with first-degree murder, first-degree conspiracy to commit murder, and related weapons offenses in stemming from the death of Yahnie Patterson, 26, of Lakewood.

“This was a complicated investigation with a great number of moving parts. The arrests of these three individuals and the removal of three handguns from the streets mark a resounding success in our continuing effort to stem the tide of gun violence in the area,”

Acting Prosecutor Lori Linskey

The case background …

Shortly after 12:15 a.m. on Saturday, June 18, Asbury Park police responded to the 1200 block of Washington Avenue on a report of shots being fired. There, they found Patterson in the roadway, having sustained severe head injuries. Patterson was transported to Jersey Shore University Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead after succumbing to his injuries on Monday, June 21.

An investigation involving members of the MCPO Major Crimes Bureau and Asbury Park police resulted in Prince and Rogers being identified as suspects in the case. Rogers was found and arrested in Neptune Township three days after the shooting, while Prince was found and arrested in Howell Township this past Friday, Aug. 19. Both arrests were made with the assistance of members of the U.S. Marshals Service.

The execution of search warrants filed in connection with this case resulted in the recovery of three handguns and a quantity of ammunition.

Also as a result of this investigation, a third defendant, 22-year-old Erikah E. Handy, of Neptune Township, was arrested in Asbury Park on Tuesday, July 26, and charged with two counts of third-degree theft for allegedly stealing Patterson’s vehicle and approximately $2,000 from him in the aftermath of the shooting.

This case has been assigned to Monmouth County Assistant Prosecutor Michael Luciano. Anyone with any information about this matter is urged to contact Prosecutor’s Office Detective Stephen Cavendish at 800-533-7443 or Asbury Park Police Department Sgt. Joseph Leon at 732-774-1300.

— Edited press release from the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office

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