Rasheen Jones | Homicide Watch Trenton

Trenton gunman murders Mason’s barber in 2013 robbery, gets convicted at trial

Sulaiman Abdur-Rahman — Thu, 28 Feb 2019 18:59:34 -0500

Zaire Smith

A city man has been convicted of murdering popular local barber Rasheen Jones during the commission of a July 2013 armed robbery.

Zaire K. Smith, 24, of Trenton, faces 30 years to life in prison after a jury found him guilty this week of first-degree felony murder and related offenses in the grisly slaying of Jones.

The murder occurred on July 23, 2013, when Smith and co-defendant Knovell Desmond targeted Jones in a senseless stickup.

Jones, a 31-year-old father of three, was gunned down on East Stuyvesant Avenue while he was returning home from a trip he had made to a local convenience store, the victim of a robbery-turned-murder. He worked as a barber for 15 years and was remembered by family and friends as a hardworking family man.

Rasheen Jones, pictured here with his 7-year-old daughter, was shot to death on July 23, 2013, in Trenton.

Rasheen Jones

Desmond, 27, of Trenton, pleaded guilty in the case on Dec. 17, 2014, confessing to first-degree robbery in a plea deal that calls for his murder charges and weapons offenses to be disposed of at sentencing, according to court records.

Smith took his case to trial, where a jury convicted him Monday of first-degree murder during the commission of a crime, two counts of first-degree armed robbery, two counts of second-degree possession of a firearm for unlawful purposes, and one count of second-degree unlawful possession of a handgun, according to the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office.

One month after the homicide, police filed complaint warrants charging both Smith and Desmond with murder and weapons offenses in the slaying of Jones. The U.S. Marshals Service New York/New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force arrested Smith in Trenton on Aug. 22, 2013, and arrested Desmond in Lindenwold on Aug. 30, 2013, authorities said.

Knovell Desmond

Both defendants have been jailed at the Mercer County Correction Center on $1 million cash bail since their arrests, court records show.

Represented by private attorney Alan D. Bowman, Smith is scheduled to be sentenced April 12 before Mercer County Superior Court Judge Thomas Brown. The convicted murderer is looking at decades upon decades of prison time for taking his case to trial and losing, marking another major victory for seasoned Supervising Assistant Prosecutor James Scott.

Desmond is represented by pool attorney Tina M. Frost and will be sentenced at an undetermined date for his self-confessed role in the deadly armed robbery.

Jones worked at Mason’s barber shop on Pennington Avenue. His violent death shocked the community.

“They killed a working man!” Mason’s co-worker James Jackson said in a July 2013 interview with The Trentonian, tears running down his face. “I hate that he left us, but now he is at peace. All he was doing was taking care of his kids and they killed him.”

Trenton man accused of killing barber rejects plea deal

Isaac Avilucea — Mon, 17 Aug 2015 19:05:13 -0400

A Trenton man suspected of killing of a city barber in 2013 has rejected prosecutors’ final plea offer and will head to trial.

Zaire Smith is the only remaining co-defendant in the murder of 20-year-old Rasheen Jones, who was shot in the head July 23, 2013, in the city’s West Ward, following a botched robbery, authorities have said.

Jones had worked for 15 years cutting hair at Mason’s barbershop before he was gunned down while walking home from a convenience store. He left behind two daughters, aged 5 and 7.

Smith was arrested alongside Knovell Desmond in connection with the murder. However, Desmond resolved murder charges by pleading guilty to two counts of robbery and a weapons count in exchange for a 10-year state prison sentence.

It remains to be seen whether Desmond will testify against Smith at trial as prosecutors did not reveal at his guilty plea whether cooperation was required as part of his deal.

That leaves Smith, who has “consistently maintained his innocence, said his attorney, Alan Bowman.

To the contrary, prosecutors have said Smith was the one who pulled the trigger. On Monday, Smith rejected prosecutors’ plea offer calling for a 25-year prison sentence for aggravated manslaughter.

Bowman said at the hearing he uncovered “substantial information” during his investigation of the murder that he contends will exonerate his client. He did elaborate in open court on the nature of the information, but shared it during a private off-the-record conversation with Assistant Prosecutor James Scott.

Smith is expected back in court for a pretrial conference in November.

Knovell Desmond pleads down to first-degree robbery

Isaac Avilucea — Thu, 18 Dec 2014 10:13:09 -0500

Prosecutors aren’t saying whether one of two men arrested in the slaying of a city barber must testify against co-defendant and alleged gunman Zaire Smith as part of a plea deal that calls for a deacade-long prison sentence.

Knovell Desmond, 22, was indicted for murder, two counts of robbery and weapons charges for his role in the shooting death of 20-year-old Rasheen Jones. Jones was shot in the head on July 23, 2013, in the city’s West Ward following a botched robbery. Desmond and Smith were arrested and charged in connection with the murder.

As part of a plea bargain, Desmond agreed to admit guilt to first-degree robbery during an appearance Wednesday in Superior Court. In exchange, prosecutors agreed to drop murder and weapons charges.

Prosecutors have said Smith, 20, was the one who pulled the trigger. He has been offered a deal that calls for a 25-year sentence if he pleads guilty to aggravated manslaughter, prosecutors said.

Jones worked for 15 years cutting hair at Mason’s barbershop before he was gunned down while walking home from a convenience store. He left behind two daughters, aged 5 and 7, at the time.

Trenton homicide victim remembered as hard-working family man

Trentonian Staff — Wed, 24 Jul 2013 14:48:00 -0400

By Ana Ceballos
TRENTON -- Rasheen Jones left his home with his cousin Tuesday night for a trip to the local convenience store. The 10-minute walk was one he’d taken many times, but this time, Jones never made it back home with the paper towels he’d purchased.

Rasheen Jones, pictured here with his 7-year-old daughter, was shot to death on July 23 in Trenton.

He was shot in the head by an unidentified assailant, and by the end of the night he was pronounced dead.

Jones’ girlfriend Joann Fisher was at home with the couple’s two children when she received a phone call from Jones’ cousin saying Rasheen had been shot.

“I ran down the street knowing exactly where this alley was,” Fisher said. “I’ve walked that street every single day for four years to go to work.”

What she found was Jones, mortally wounded with little time left to live.

She held him, asking Jones to hold on as she dialed 9-1-1. Arriving paramedics were unable to save him as Jones gushed blood out of his mouth.

After being together for seven years, Fisher lost her partner to Trenton’s street violence, just because he was on his way to buy some paper towels at the local store.

“He wasn’t involved in gangs. He owned no guns,” Fisher said. “We would always be home watching movies and making dinner.”
The 31-year-old barber and father of three became Trenton’s 23rd homicide victim in 2013.

On Wednesday morning, the alley where Jones was shot was still sealed off by Trenton police investigating the crime. Police have released no descriptions of possible suspects and have not detailed a possible motive for Jones’ killing.

Police investigate the scene of Rasheen Jones' shooting death. (Photo By Ana Ceballos)

A couple’s home neighboring the alley was briefly searched for clues.

“I was taking a nap when I heard the bullets,” said the man whose home was searched. “But it’s Trenton, you always hear bullets. I never expected it to be right in my backyard.”

According to the man, who asked to not be identified, he heard the shot at approximately 7:30 p.m. when he awoke from his nap. His wife said she wasn’t able to sleep knowing that someone was killed just feet away from the home where they have lived for more than 20 years.

But according to Fisher and James Jackson, Jones’ co-worker at Mason’s barbershop, the city’s latest homicide victim was not a man working the streets. Instead, the friend said, he was a working man and a family man.

“They killed a working man!” Jackson said with tears running down his face. “I hate that he left us, but now he is at peace. All he was doing was taking care of his kids and they killed him.”

The third chair at Mason's Barber Shop, where Trenton homicide victim Rasheen Jones worked for 10 years, now sits empty. (Photo By Ana Ceballos)

For 15 years Jones worked as a barber, holding Mason’s third chair, which is now empty, facing two pictures in the mirror. One shows him smiling with his 7-year-old daughter and the other is a picture of his daughter and his 5-year-old son.

The 5-year-old son and 7-year-old daughter of Rasheen Jones, who was shot to death in Trenton on July 23. The photo hangs on a wall at Mason's Barber Shop, where Jones worked for 10 years.

Jones worked at Mason’s since 2003. He was a high school graduate and a loving father, Jackson said.
Every day, Jackson said, Jones would walk home for lunch. Living just a couple of blocks from Mason’s, his routine became working and spending time with his family.

Anyone with information regarding the crimes can call the Trenton Police confidential tipline at (609) 989-3663 or the Crime Stoppers tipline at (609) 278-8477.