MORRIS COUNTY — Morris County Prosecutor Robert J. Carroll, Chief of Detectives Robert McNally, Morris County Sheriff James Gannon, and Roxbury Police Chief Dean Adone announce that Auraceli A. Maldonado, 24, of Irvington, and Jean Omar Rockson, 33, of Orange, have been indicted in connection with the shooting of a man at the Roxbury Motel on October 18, 2023.
Authorities previously announced the arrest of Maldonado in connection with the incident. Maldonado has been held at the Morris County Correctional Facility under the Criminal Justice Reform Act since her arrest last November. Following a thorough investigation, Rockson was arrested on February 15, 2024, outside of his residence. Rockson is currently being held at the Morris County Correctional Facility under the Criminal Justice Reform Act.
Rockson and Maldonaldo were indicted by a grand jury on three counts of first-degree Robbery, one count of second-degree Conspiracy to Commit Robbery, one count of second-degree Aggravated Assault, one count of second-degree Possession of a Weapon for an Unlawful Purpose, and one count of third-degree Unlawful Possession of a Weapon.
The charges stem from the shooting of a man at the Roxbury Motel on Route 46 in Roxbury on October 18, 2023. At approximately 8:54 p.m., authorities were notified that a man had been shot at that location. Roxbury Police officers arrived on scene, located a male victim with a gunshot wound to the leg, and provided lifesaving medical aid. The 36-year-old victim was transported to a medical center with severe but not life-threatening injuries. The suspects fled the scene immediately after the incident.
Subsequent investigation revealed the victim had planned to meet with an unknown suspect at the motel. On the date of the incident, surveillance video captured a Honda Accord with a New York registration arriving at the motel parking lot, and a man and a woman are depicted exiting the vehicle. It is alleged that these two individuals met with the victim and that the woman was armed with an AR-style rifle during the interaction. It is alleged that the two suspects robbed the victim, who was shot in the leg during a struggle for the firearm, and fled the scene.
It is alleged that Rockson provided Maldonado with the firearm used in the commission of the robbery.
Both defendants have been scheduled for an Arraignment before the Hon. Ralph E. Amirata, J.S.C. on March 11, 2024.
Prosecutor Carroll acknowledges the efforts of the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit, the Roxbury Police Department, the Orange Police Department, the Morris County Sheriff’s Office – Crime Scene Investigation Unit, and the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office on this investigation.
A criminal complaint is merely an accusation. Despite this accusation, this Defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
