An Essex County man who was one of Hudson County's most wanted for two years before his arrest on a carjacking charge last week has now been charged with bail jumping for missing a court hearing while he was on the lam.
JERSEY CITY -- An Essex County man who was one of Hudson County's most wanted for two years before his arrest last month is now facing charges stemming from a missed court hearing in 2014.
Clarence Dabney, 30, of Newark, is charged with missing a hearing related to a drug charge on Oct. 17, 2014. Dabney, who is already facing charges of attempted murder and carjacking, had his bail set at $50,000 cash only when he appeared on the new charge in court today.
Gaffney, who served three years in prison for drug possession and has been arrested numerous times, was picked up in Newark on the outstanding attempted murder warrant on Sept. 23, officials said.
The warrant was issued on Oct. 17, 2014, but Gaffney, who is formerly of Jersey City, was never apprehended. He had been on the Hudson County Prosecutor's Office's most-wanted list for nearly two years prior to his arrest on the attempted murder charge last month.
According to a police report, Gaffney shot a Jersey City man twice in the back on Martin Luther King Drive on Aug. 28, 2014. The victim, who was 21 at the time, was taken to the hospital in critical condition and underwent surgery for the gunshot wounds.
Following his arrest on the attempted murder charge, he was released from jail Oct. 7 after posting a $150,000 bail, but was arrested several days later on a carjacking charge.
Gaffney allegedly removed vehicle keys from a woman's hand as she exited a vehicle in Jersey City and then took the vehicle, a criminal complaint states. He was charged after she identified him in a photo array, authorities said.
During the arrest, Gaffney allegedly refused to be handcuffed, injured one police with a kick to the ribs and struggled with another officer, causing back and spine injuries, the complaint says.
Gaffney appeared on the bail jumping charge this afternoon in Central Judicial Processing court in Jersey City via video link from Hudson County jail in Kearny. During the hearing, the judge said his bails now total $350,000.