An argument over a unsettled drug debt led to two men sustaining gunshot wounds, police reports say.
Stacey Turman (Essex County Dept. of Corrections)NEWARK — One man owed the other $40. An attempt to settle the debt led to a verbal confrontation, punches, and then finally, gunshots, according to police reports obtained by NJ Advance Media.
Police are still investigating the incident, a Nov. 1 shooting that left two Newark men injured from gunshot wounds over what police reports indicate was a narcotics debt.
It began at a residence in the 300 block of Clinton Avenue at 8 a.m., police reports say. Upon arriving at the scene, Newark Police Department officers discovered two male victims bleeding and wounded, the reports say.
Officers found one victim, whose name is being withheld by NJ Advance Media, in the middle of the road suffering an apparent gunshot wound to the left hand, the reports say.
The man identified his alleged assailant as building superintendent Stacy Turman, who he initially told police owed him $40 for work unpaid maintenance work, the reports say.
The man told police that he and Turman, 54, were arguing about the debt when the superintendent punched him in the face and brandished a gun, the reports indicate. The man told investigators he was shot in the hand while trying to brush the gun away, the reports say.
During a search of the building, investigators found Turman inside suffering a gunshot wound to the knee. Turman later accused the man of shooting him over a debt, which he admitted to owing, the reports say.
After sorting through the differing accounts, investigators found that the two men were shot during a struggle that started after Turman allegedly brandished a gun during the argument, the report states. The $40 Turman owed was allegedly for narcotics purchased on credit, the report states.
Police arrested Turman on multiple weapons-related charges, including aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and possession of an illegal weapon.
Following an arraignment, Turman was remanded into custody at the Essex County Correctional Facility on $200,000 bail.
Vernal Coleman can be reached at vcoleman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @vernalcoleman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
