Suspect in Newark IHOP Murder CaseThe jury selection process has begun in the trial of a Newark NJ man facing first degree murder charges.

According to the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, the 28-year-old suspect committed the homicide at an IHOP restaurant located on Bergen Street in Newark, New Jersey.

The incident happened during the early morning hours on March 23, 2013.

The shooting left the 30-year-old IHOP manager with gunshot wounds that ended up being fatal. The victim lived in Middlesex Borough, NJ.

The shooting also resulted in two other people sustaining serious injuries.

The fatal shooting was spurred by an altercation between two groups of people at the IHOP restaurant. One group allegedly got involved in a dispute with another group, with the second group consisting entirely of females. At some point during the verbal altercation, a few individuals in each group got physical and started to fight.

The suspect was reportedly wearing a hoodie when he entered the IHOP and confronted a man in one of the groups.

The IHOP manager attempted to intervene and help other customers exit the restaurant, but he was reportedly shot by the suspect. Witnesses said that the victim, a Senegalese immigrant, was caught in the gunfire. He sustained a bullet wound to the head as a result of the gunshots.

Emergency responders arrived at the scene and took the victim to nearby University Hospital. Tragically, doctors could not save the victim; he was pronounced dead at the hospital just a few hours after the shooting.

Newark police investigated the incident and found surveillance camera footage that reportedly showed the suspect running from the scene.

The suspect was placed under arrest in 2014 and charged with multiple crimes, including murder, attempted murder, witness tampering, and various weapons offenses.

Now attorneys on both sides have started selecting jurors in the murder trial. The trial is slated to occur in Essex County Superior Court in Newark, New Jersey.

During the trial, the suspect will be held at the Essex County Correctional Facility on a massive $1 million bail amount.

For more information about this case, see the NJ.com article entitled “Newark Man to Face Trial in Killing of IHOP Manager.”