Newark – Acting Essex County Prosecutor Robert D. Laurino announced today that Miguel Williams, 35, of East Orange, pleaded guilty before the Honorable Marysol Rosero, Judge of Superior Court, to first degree aggravated manslaughter and weapons charges for fatally shooting Kwame Yeboah, 30, of East Orange.
According to authorities, under the terms of the plea agreement, Williams is expected to be sentenced to 25 years in state prison.
Williams must serve 85 percent of his sentence before he is eligible for parole. When he is paroled, he will have an additional five years of parole supervision, according to Assistant Prosecutor Austin Edwards, who handled the case.
Authorities said on Feb. 9, 2015, Yeboah was sitting in a car with a friend in the 200 block of North 9th Street in Newark. Around 10:30 p.m., Williams approached the vehicle and shot Yeboah multiple times. The driver of the car, a female, was critically injured but survived. The motive for the shooting was not clear. However, Williams and Yeboah had known each other for many years.
Authorities said, today, jury selection was almost completed, and lawyers were expecting to open this afternoon when Williams decided to enter his guilty plea.
Sentencing is scheduled for April 20. Williams has four prior felony convictions, including two gun offenses and two drug distribution offenses.
Assistant Prosecutor Edwards said, “While nothing can truly make amends for the senseless actions of the defendant, we hope that this resolution brings closure and a sense of justice for the family of Mr. Yeboah and the surviving victim.
This result would not have been possible without the hard work of the detectives in this case and the willingness of people in the community to come forward with information about this tragic shooting.”