Police took Winston "Jesus" Wilson, 24, into custody, and prosecutors charged him with first-degree attempted murder, first-degree robbery and weapons charges.
The vehicle was located at 1 a.m. Monday behind an apartment complex in Edison, where Wilson is a resident.
The violent incident occurred on Vanderbilt Street in Franklin Township at 6:30 a.m. Saturday. Police found the 18-year-old victim outside the home, suffering from a significant head injury and lacerations/stab wounds to her arms and upper torso. After searching her bedroom, investigators found obvious signs of a physical altercation.
The teen was home alone during the assault, but somehow managed to stagger to a neighbor's house for help. As surgeons struggled to try to save her life, authorities began their manhunt.
Prosecutor Geoffrey Soriano said that detectives have not released a motive for the assault, but he advised that the incident was isolated and the victim was an intended target. The investigation also revealed that Wilson and the victim knew each other.
Neighbor Santos Aviles served in Afghanistan and wishes he knew his young neighbor had been home by herself because he would have kept an eye on her."If she was home by herself, one of us at least could have checked up on her, see if she was doing good," he said.
The investigation has revealed that, while the victim was home alone at the time of the assault, other individuals were present in the residence earlier that evening.
Eyewitness News is told the house was a mess, but it was not clear if anything else was stolen.
The investigation remains active, and detectives are urging anyone with information pertaining to this incident to contact the Franklin Township Police Department at (732) 873-2300, the Somerset County Prosecutors Office Major Crimes Unit at (908) 231-7100, or the Somerset County Crime Stoppers' Tip Line at 1-888-577-TIPS (8477) or online at www.888577tips.org or www.scpo.net and click on either "Crime Stoppers" or "TIPS HOTLINE". All Crime Stopper tips will be kept confidential.
