Police re-release video of gunmen in New Jersey sneaker store cold case murder
RAHWAY, New Jersey (WABC) -- Police in New Jersey have re-released surveillance video in hopes it will help them solve the 4-year-old cold-case murder of a sneaker store owner.
Jamal Gaines, 21, was gunned down by two gunman inside his East Coast store on Irving Street in Rahway just after 9 p.m. on February 26, 2016.
Prosecutors say the video captures the suspects fleeing down a rear alley after they shot Gaines during a scuffle. One of them showed a pronounced limp.
"Although we've interviewed over 80 individuals in connection with this case, we need information and we need the public to come forward," Acting Union County Prosecutor Lyndsay Ruotolo said. "We hope that for someone in the public it jogs a memory, it sparks an instant of recognition."
According to investigators, the gunmen had their faces obscured by fabric when they accessed the sneaker store through a rear utility door, before a physical struggle culminated with the fatal shot being fired.
Gaines was found suffering from a gunshot wound, and he was pronounced dead shortly thereafter.
A $10,00 reward is being offered for information leading to an arrest and indictment.
"It really breaks our heart to know that someone in our community knows something, but aren't saying anything," Jamal Gaines' sister Divinity said.
"I'm reaching out to that person who knows something because as we all know somebody knows something, but they're just scared," Jamal Gaines' mother Tina Wilson said.
Anyone with information about the shooting is being urged to contact Sgt. Sofia Santos at 908-577-4256 or Detective Ryan Kirsh at 908-347-1420. Tips can also be given anonymously by phone at 908-654-TIPS (8477), via text message by texting "UCTIP" plus a message to 274637 (CRIMES).
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