Police investigators looking into the four shootings that occurred in July and August are appealing to witnesses to call and tell them what they know, even anonymously.
“I truly and strongly believe that there are people in the community who have information” about the shootings, Capt. Steve McCarthy tells redbankgreen.
No injuries resulted from any of the four incidents between July 31 and August 22, though a bullet entered the bathroom of a house near Drs. Parker Boulevard and South Pearl Street and another was lodged in the siding of a Clinton Place residence. All the shootings occurred west of Maple Avenue and no arrests have been made.
Evidence from the shootings — two bullets and two shell casings, one of which was retrieved from each crime scene — were sent to the State Police, which entered them into the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN), says McCarthy. The database enables image-based comparisons of ballistic evidence from crimes.
Red Bank has yet to be notified of any potential matches. McCarthy declined to say if preliminary analysis indicated that the bullets and shells came from a single weapon.
McCarthy also declined to comment on remarks made at the Oct. 22 Borough Council meeting, where Councilman Art Murphy indicated significant progress had been made toward finding the shooter or shooters. Murphy is the council’s liaison to the police department.
The investigation of the shootings “is under control,” Murphy said, as part of an outburst in which he confronted Councilwoman Grace Cangemi for statements she made at the candidate’s night on Oct. 7. “If I told you you the story,” Murphy said, “you’d say, ‘Wow!.'”
McCarthy said it would be inappropriate for him to discuss the case in detail or address the substance of Murphy’s remarks.
“We’re making some progress,” McCarthy said. “We have a good direction, but anything can help.”
