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Keith N. Jordan, 30, is charged with first-degree counts of murder and attempted murders, as well as aggravated assault and weapons offenses, among other charges, for his role in the killing.
An as-yet unidentified gunman shot Dione Ellis in the head in the the area of Prospect Street and Stuyvesant Avenue at 12:45 a.m. July 5, the nine-count indictment alleges. The youngster died at the scene, it says.
A second boy, also 16, was hospitalized with a gunshot wound in his leg.
An initial canvas of the area produced eight shell casings, Mercer County Prosecutor Angelo J. Onofri said.
Members of the Mercer County Homicide Task Force and Trenton Police Department also found surveillance footage showing Jordan parking his 2016 Toyota Camry on Frazier Street and a passenger getting out.
Eight gunshots were heard before the gunman races back to the car and it drives away, according to court papers.
An automated reader got the license plate number of the Camry, which authorities found parked in front of his Stuyvesant Avenue home, it says.
In the vehicle they found a 9mm handgun with a 33-round extended magazine, hollow-point bullets and an empty 10-round magazine, Onofri said.
Supervising Assistant Prosecutor Heather Hadley secured the grand jury indictment, which also charges Jordan with hindering apprehension, as well as illegal possession of a high-capacity magazine and a defaced firearm, he said.
Jordan remained held in the Mercer County Correction Center in Lambertville while the search for the shooter continued.
Dione Alexander Ellis, who was a sophomore at Trenton Central High School, played JV basketball, worked as a lifeguard in a summer youth program at the Roberto Clemente Pool and had dreams of becoming a designer, loved ones said.
At only 15 years old, he created an LLC named “Young N Turnt” and created a clothing line.
“The city lost not just a vibrant life but one that protected our children,” one mourner wrote.
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