Man shot by cop in Rumson released from hospital to jail, now facing burglary rap

RUMSON - The Newark man shot by police during a burglary investigation in this affluent borough early Friday has been released from the hospital and, along with a codefendant, is in the Monmouth County Jail, facing burglary, theft and conspiracy charges.

The individual who was shot is identified in court documents as Nnamdi Atumudo.

Atumudo, 27, was just released from New Jersey State Prison in Trenton on June 28 after serving a term for a 2020 robbery in Hudson County, according to the state Corrections Department's website.

He had been in Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune after being shot early Friday - his 27th birthday - by an unidentified Fair Haven police officer during a burglary investigation in Rumson.

An operator at Jersey Shore said late Saturday afternoon that Atumudo had been discharged.

Nnamdi Atumudo
Nnamdi Atumudo

Now, Atumudo and codefendant Rasheen Yarbrough, 20, are in the Monmouth County Jail in Freehold, pending hearings to determine if they will be held without bail to await trial, according to court documents.

Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond S. Santiago said in a news release Friday that his office was investigating the police-involved shooting of a 27-year-old Newark man during a burglary investigation in Rumson that day.

Santiago said a police officer from neighboring Fair Haven who responded to a 911 call just before 4:45 a.m. encountered two suspects in a moving vehicle in the vicinity of Avenue of the Two Rivers and Shrewsbury Drive and discharged his firearm, wounding one of the suspects.

The wounded suspect was taken to a hospital, suffering from injuries that were not life-threatening, the prosecutor said. Meanwhile, a prosecutor's spokesman said the second suspect had been taken into custody, pending charges.

The prosecutor did not identify either of the two suspects or the officer who discharged his firearm and said an investigation is underway to determine the circumstances surrounding the shooting.

A prosecutor's spokesman said no additional information was expected to be released Saturday.

However, complaints and related court documents identify Atumudo and Yarbrough as the defendants.

Municipal court records listing the charges against the pair said the crimes occurred at 4:43 a.m. Friday in Rumson and that Atumudo was shot by law enforcement.

Atumudo and Yarbrough are charged in complaints with conspiring to commit burglaries to multiple vehicles and homes in Rumson. They also are charged with burglary by entering a vehicle in the driveway of Woodmere Drive, burglary by entering a garage on Avenue of the Two Rivers, conspiring to commit a burglary into a home at the same address on Avenue of the Two Rivers, and theft of a motorcycle valued at $328.99..

A preliminary law enforcement incident report said the defendants fled in a motor vehicle.

Municipal court records indicate no weapon was used and no one was injured during the alleged burglaries.

Kathleen Hopkins, a reporter in New Jersey since 1985, covers crime, court cases, legal issues and just about every major murder trial to hit Monmouth and Ocean counties. Contact her at khopkins@app.com.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Man shot by cop during Rumson burglary investigation is now in jail