Dawan Jeter

By Cecilia Levine From Daily Voice

An hours-long manhunt following a shooting that placed nearby schools on a hold Tuesday, Nov. 18 ended in the arrest of a Hillsborough teen, police said.

Officers were called to the area of 649 Route 206, south of Amwell Road, around 1 p.m., for reports of shots fired, where witnesses gave police descriptions of the alleged shooter and victim, Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald said.

Both the shooter and victim ran from the scene before officers arrived, McDonald said.

Responding Hillsborough officers confirmed a shooting had taken place, observed and secured a crime scene, and set up a perimeter while searching for both people, McDonald said. As a precaution, “authorities placed area schools in a secure hold and advised local residents and businesses to use caution.”

A significant law enforcement response followed, including detectives from the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes and Crime Scene Investigations Unit, the Somerset County Sheriff’s Office and K-9 Unit, and aerial support from the New Jersey State Police Aviation Unit, officials said.

Investigators eventually located the victim, a 19-year-old Hillsborough resident, who was not injured, McDonald said. Through investigative work, police identified the alleged shooter as Dawan Jeter, 19, of Hillsborough.

Authorities obtained a Superior Court search warrant for Jeter’s home, but the search turned up nothing, McDonald said. Police were later informed that Jeter was heading to the Hillsborough Police Department to surrender, officials said.

At 5:56 p.m., Jeter surrendered without incident and was taken into custody. He was charged with first-degree attempted murder, second-degree unlawful possession of a handgun, second-degree possession of a firearm for an unlawful purpose, and third-degree endangering another person, the prosecutor said. He was taken to the Somerset County Jail pending a detention hearing.

All alarms were cancelled once defendant Jeter was in police custody, McDonald said.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office at (908) 231-7100, Hillsborough Police at (908) 369-4313, or submit anonymous tips through the STOPit app (code: SOMERSETNJ) or the Somerset County Tip Line at 1-888-577-TIPS (8477). “All anonymous STOPit reports, and tips will be kept confidential,” the release said.