SWAT Team Helps Capture Gunman Wanted In Bar Shooting, 2nd Suspect At Large: Linden PD

The Union County SWAT Team helped in capture a 27-year-old man accused of opening fire at a nightclub and wounding three people, while a second suspect remains at large, authorities said.

Najir Paige and Sharif Evans.
Photo Credit: *Essex County Jail/Linden PD*

Cecilia Levine

08/29/2022 7:11 p.m.

Najir Paige got into a fight at the bar at Menga Lounge in Linden when he left, got a handgun from a car, came back and fired shots through the front door around 2 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 6, Linden police said.

A 28-year-old man, 24-year-old woman and 23-year-old woman were injured in the attack.

Paige was arrested on Aug. 24, when members of Union County S.W.A.T., with assistance from the Linden Police Department, Union County Prosecutor’s Office, and Union County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Unit executed a search warrant at his home in East Orange.

He was charged with first-degree attempted murder, second-degree aggravated assault, second-degree possession of a weapon, and associated crimes.

Paige was being held at the Essex County Jail pending an appearance in Superior Court. A second suspect, identified as 25-year-old Sharif Evans (pictured below), also of East Orange, was also charged for his role in the incident. Evans currently remains at large.

Click here to follow Daily Voice Union and receive free news updates.