No one has been arrested in the mass shooting that killed two people and sent eight others to the hospital after multiple gunmen fired into a crowd at a block party in Trenton, New Jersey, early on August 30, 2026, and authorities have not released a motive.
The Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office is leading the case, working alongside the Mercer County Homicide Task Force and the Trenton Police Department. Detectives have been reviewing surveillance video and canvassing for witnesses from a gathering that officials say drew roughly 100 people to a single residential block.
How the Shooting Unfolded
Officials said the crowd assembled on the 100 block of Locust Street on the night of August 29 for what family members and friends described as a neighborhood cookout. Shortly after midnight, at about 12:23 a.m., multiple suspects walked up to the party and began shooting into the crowd, according to the prosecutor’s office.
A woman who said she was at the cookout and asked not to be named estimated that about 150 people were there when the first shots rang out. She said the crowd believed the gunfire had stopped after an initial burst before it started again, and she did not know how many people were shooting.
Police dispatch audio captured about 15 separate calls reporting gunshot victims on Locust Street. Officers who arrived found multiple victims across a crime scene that stretched the length of the block. Detectives collected more than 50 spent shell casings, and gunfire damaged several vehicles. Neighboring police departments and the New Jersey State Police responded to help.
The wounded were taken to Capital Health Regional Medical Center, roughly 2 miles from the scene, by ambulance and in private vehicles. An entrance to the hospital was cordoned off with tape that morning, and a damaged vehicle parked at the emergency room entrance was towed away. Outside the medical center, a woman said her nephew had been shot in the head.
Two Killed, Eight Hospitalized
In all, 10 people were shot. Two of them, a woman of 33 and a man of 42, did not survive. On Monday, loved ones and officials identified them as Tyaisha West, whose name has also been given as Tyasiah West, and Yahsim Howlett, both of Trenton. Howlett has also been identified as Anthony Howlett.
The eight survivors taken to the hospital — two women and six men — ranged in age from 23 to 43. Four of them were treated and released. Three men, ages 23, 29 and 32, remained in critical condition, and a 42-year-old woman was listed in stable condition.
Casualty counts varied in the hours after the shooting. Trenton Mayor W. Reed Gusciora and police initially said nine people were hurt, while the prosecutor’s office reported eight hospitalizations; officials later explained that the additional person was hospitalized after a crash tied to the incident. Earlier on Sunday, Gusciora had said 11 people were shot at what he described as a large, unauthorized gathering of adults.
In a statement posted to social media, the mayor said one of the men killed had been working to rebuild his life after coming home from incarceration and had recently been honored for his commitment to reentry and positive change.
Questions Over Permits and Police Presence
Gusciora met with reporters on Sunday afternoon and said the violence grew out of an unauthorized event that spiraled beyond control. Large gatherings in Trenton require a permit, an approved street closure and hired security, he said, urging residents who want to hold a block party to go through the city and police first. He called 10 victims unconscionable.
Trenton Police Director Steve Wilson said the investigation was in its infancy and described officers as having monitored the growing crowd through the night. A street supervisor ordered extra attention be paid to the gathering, Wilson said, but the crowd outnumbered the police presence. Asked whether officers were nearby when the shooting started, he said that had not been confirmed but that he believed it was the case.
That answer has not satisfied everyone in the neighborhood. Neighbors said police should have broken up the party well before the gunfire. “This should have been prevented,” Trenton resident Grace Fernandez said. She wanted to know how a crowd of that size was allowed to carry on past midnight only three blocks from where she lives.
Outreach in Wilbur and East Trenton
Speaking to people who live in the Wilbur section and East Trenton, Gusciora said community outreach teams would be sent into both neighborhoods to speak with residents, find out what they had heard and try to prevent any retaliation. “You should not have to accept this as normal,” the mayor said, adding that no residential block should be turned into a party site for hundreds of people with no warning and no permission.
Wilson, for his part, said the presence of officers is not always enough to stop people intent on destruction. Gusciora has pressed residents to report what they know, saying the violence can be prevented in the future if people speak up.
Investigators are still asking for help. Anyone with information or video from the 100 block of Locust Street is asked to contact the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office at 609-989-6406.