Authorities have identified the victim in one of Wednesday night's back-to-back fatal shootings as a 27-year-old Irvington man.
NEWARK -- After a deadly night in Newark that saw back-to-back fatal shootings, authorities have identified one of the victims as a 27-year-old Irvington man.
Fuquan Johnson was shot and killed at around 9:30 p.m. Wednesday in the Valisburg section of the city's West Ward, Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn Murray and Newark Police Department Director Eugene Venable announced.
A male victim in an earlier shooting in the city's South Ward has yet to be identified, said Anthony Ambrose, Essex County Prosecutor's Office Chief of Detectives.
The shootings, which occurred a little more than three miles from each other, do not appear to be related, Ambrose said.
An investigation into the killings began around 7 p.m., when Newark police were summoned to the 100 block of Mapes Avenue after receiving reports of gunshots, Ambrose said.
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After arriving, officers found two males suffering apparent gunshot wounds, Ambrose said. Emergency officials transported one to University Hospital to be treated for non-life threatening injuries, he added.
The second victim was found unresponsive and pronounced dead at the scene, Ambrose said. His identity has yet to be determined, he added.
Hours later, Newark police were called to the intersection of 18th Avenue and Alexander Street, where at approximately 9:30 p.m officers found Johnson suffering an apparent gunshot wound. Authorities later pronounced him dead at the scene, Ambrose said.
Authorities have yet to identify suspects or motives in either killing, Ambrose said. An investigation into the shootings by the Essex County Prosecutor's Office Homicide Task Force is in its early stages, he added.
The killings bring Newark's 2015 homicide total even closer to its 2014 tally. According to Ambrose, the city's 2015 homicide total stands at 89 following the Wednesday night shootings. Authorities recorded 93 homicides in Newark in 2014.
Vernal Coleman can be reached at vcoleman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @vernalcoleman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.