Brick Man Indicted In Long Branch Shooting

FREEHOLD, NJ - A Monmouth County grand jury has indicted an Ocean County man on charges of attempted murder and burglary of a Long Branch man back in October, Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni said.

Donovan Wesley, 25, of Brick Township, was indicted on Monday in connection with the shooting of the 31-year-old victim in his apartment on West Columbus Place in the early hours of Oct. 8. Wesley is accused going to the victim's apartment after an argument with the victim and shooting him multiple times, Gramiccioni said.

Police responded to a 911 call reporting shots fired and found the victim wounded. The man was treated for his injuries at Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune and was released several days later, Gramiccioni said.

A joint investigation by the prosecutor's office and the Long Branch Police Department revealed Wesley shot the victim after the two men got into a verbal disagreement earlier in the evening. Wesley then arrived at the victim's home and confronted the victim before shooting him during a brief struggle, he said.

Wesley fled and was arrested 10 days later by the U.S. Marshal's Service and Monmouth County sheriff's officers.
Wesley was indicted on one count each of second-degree armed burglary, first-degree attempted murder, second-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and first-degree unlawful possession of a weapon, Gramiccioni said.

The burglary charge carries a sentence of 5 to 10 years, and the attempted murder charge carries a potential sentence of up to 20 years in prison, with both subject to the state's No Early Release Act, he said.

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