Two people have been charged with robbing a man and shooting him late last month along Delaware Canal State Park in Bristol Township’s Edgely section.
Raquan “Mook” Johnson, 18, of Trenton, and Javonte Musarra, 18, of Bristol Township, were both charged Wednesday with attempted murder, robbery, conspiracy, reckless endangerment, aggravated assault, and a litany of other charges.
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Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Rangers and Bristol Township police were dispatched to the canal towpath between Haines Road and Edgely Road on Sunday, March 29 for a shooting call. They arrived to find a 41-year-old Philadelphia man in the area of the BP Gas Station with lacerations and a gunshot wound to his back.
The 41-year-old man was taken to St. Mary Medical Center in Middletown and survived the shooting that planted a bullet in his back on his left side. The man required a 16.5-hour emergency surgery. His injuries may leave him with a lifetime of damage, according to court papers filed by the Pennsylvania State Police, who handled the investigation because it was on state park property.
The 41-year-old man told investigators he was traveling on his bicycle from Levittown to the 7-Eleven next to the state park on Route 13 to get chocolate milk and a honey bun. As he was outside the convenience store, a man asked him to go into the 7-Eleven and purchase a pack of Newport Cigarettes and a “Dutch.” He ended up purchasing the items and handing them to the man, who offered to sell him methamphetamine, state police said.
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After the man left the store, he was traveling on the historic towpath along the canal when he saw the young man who he made purchase for at the 7-Eleven and another man appear. The two – later identified as Johnson and Musarra – offered him a “sample” of meth. The two then came closer and began attacking him, went through his pockets to take his cell phone, and shot him before fleeing, state police said.
The 41-year-old man reported he heard Musarra order Johnson to “shoot him” during the attack. Moments later, he heard the shot and “immediately felt a warm sensation in his stomach,” state police said.
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A witness told troopers that they watched the two young men attack the 41-year-old man by punching and kicking him. They then heard a gunshot and spotted the two fleeing toward the Lavana Falls Apartments, state police said.
The man who was shot identified the two suspects as the ones who shot him based on surveillance video gathered, court papers stated.
The day after the shooting, two troopers investigating the incident were canvassing the area and ran into Johnson, who matched the suspect description. Johnson, whose girlfriend lives nearby, told troopers he had an interaction with the 41-year-old man outside the 7-Eleven but denied a physical altercation or shooting him. He also stated he was not allowed in the convenience store, state police said.
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Last week, troopers ended up finding Musarra in Norristown in Montgomery County. They questioned him about the shooting and he said he and Johnson got in a fight with a man, but denied hearing a gunshot, state police reported.
Musarra said the 41-year-old man actually asked them about buying drugs.
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While stopping Musarra in Norristown, troopers reported finding a red plastic baggie with suspect marijuana. The bag appeared to match one found at the shooting seen in Bristol Township.
Johnson was arraigned Wednesday and Musarra was arraigned Thursday on the charges. Bail for both was set at 10 percent of $2 million.
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Editor’s Note: All individuals arrested or charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty. The story was compiled using information from police and public court documents.
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