Trenton has had a record 32 homicides this year following mass police layoffs in the city in 2011.
TRENTON — The capital city's yearly record for homicides was shattered just after noon today on the sidewalk in front of Chambersburg's Italian Peoples Bakery.
Brandon Nance, 26, was shot to death outside the landmark business on Butler Street by suspects who remain at large, police said.
The killing marks the 32nd homicide in Trenton this year, setting a new record for the city where the nearly-daily toll of gun violence has sparked statewide concern. Trenton had 31 homicides in 2005.
Investigators found that the shooting started about a block away from the bakery, on Hudson Street near Hamilton Avenue, where the two suspects went after Nance.
"The victim was shot at and then chased down Peoples Bakery Lane to the front of the bakery, where the suspects fired numerous additional shots at him," Lt. Steve Varn said.
Police were called to the scene of the shooting at 12:22 p.m. Nance was rushed to St. Francis Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead thirty minutes later.
Two people who heard the gunshots near the bakery in the heart of Chambersburg shortly after 12:30 p.m. said they saw the unresponsive victim after he was shot and said he may have been hit several times.
One witness, a Hamilton man who did not want to give his name for fear of retaliation, said he saw the man lying face down on the sidewalk in front of the bakery as a store employee and then paramedics tried to revive him.
The suspects fled on foot, pushing their guns into their waistbands as they ran, the witness said. They were both black males, one 6 feet to 6 feet 2 inches tall, the other 5 foot 8 to 5 foot 11 inches tall, the Hamilton resident said.
No arrests have been made in the case, Varn said. Police did not release any descriptions of the suspects.
Police Director Ralph Rivera Jr. was on the scene within minutes. Rivera said in an interview this evening he was in the bakery just yesterday buying bagels and pastries for his office.
"This is an area that is a relatively safe area, and its unfortunate this individual came from the Hudson and Hamilton Avenue area, where we have had drug problems," he said.
Investigators were also at two additional crime scenes, including one in a side alley off Hudson Street near Hamilton Avenue, about a block and a half from the site of the shooting, where at least five shell casings were visible on the ground. Varn identified those areas as where the foot chase between the suspects and the victim began.
Rivera said the victim was well-known to city police and had an extensive criminal history.
"This is what happens sometimes: when you lead this type of lifestyle these things happen," Rivera said. "And the fact that this violence happened there is a sad thing for the city of Trenton."
Trenton officials have pleaded for state intervention in the city's crime problems following the layoff of more than 100 police officers in 2011 amid wide-ranging city budget cuts.
Two weeks ago, Trenton police Detectives Edgar Rios and James Letts were shot in an exchange of gunfire during a domestic violence investigation. Rios remains hospitalized in critical, but stable condition. The gunman was killed in the shootout.
The State Police has been involved in surges of street-level policing in the city for months and the state Office of the Attorney General recently announced two initiatives to increase the assistance.
Gov. Chris Christie has suggested that Mercer County should consider folding the city's police department into a county-wide department, mirroring the efforts in Camden.
Mickey Forker, a retired Trenton police officer who spent 33 years on the force, drove down to Butler Street this afternoon to see the killing scene for himself.
"You couldn't clean this city up with anything less than 400 cops and a change in leadership," he said.
Forker lambasted acting state Attorney General John Hoffman and the new State Police initiative in Trenton, which began two weeks ago today.
"Political posturing, political grandstanding and showboating," he said.
Hoffman's office yesterday afternoon released a statement on the latest killing.
"We're disheartened to have learned about this latest senseless killing in Trenton," said Paul Loriquet, a spokesman for the attorney general's office. "We know our efforts are making a difference by the reduction in shootings and the reduction in drug dealing complaints. Unfortunately, despite our best efforts, we simply cannot prevent every murder. We will, however, not stop fighting for a safer community."
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