the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Hackensack NJ, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced the arrests of DIOR ALSTON (DOB: 08/28/2001; single; laborer) of 37 Agar Place, South Hackensack, NJ and MALIK ABEL (DOB: 03/11/2001; single; electrician) of 356 Maywood Avenue, Maywood, NJ on charges of murder, attempted murder, conspiracy to commit murder, possession of a firearm for an unlawful purpose, unlawful possession of a handgun and stalking; and RAYSHAWN POWEL-MYHAND (DOB: 10/01/2003; single; cashier) of 95 Railroad Avenue, Apt. B4, Hackensack, NJ on charges of hindering apprehension. The arrests are the result of an investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Jason Love and the Hackensack Police Department under the direction of Officer-in-Charge Captain Michael Antista.
At approximately 5:00 p.m., on Saturday, November 12, 2022, the Hackensack Police Department responded to a report of shots fired in the area of Essex Street and Lehigh Street in Hackensack, NJ. Responding Hackensack Police Officers found one male victim who sustained a non-life-threatening gunshot wound. A second victim, 28-year-old Vidal R. Nieves, was transported to Hackensack University Medical Center, where he was pronounced deceased from a gunshot wound.
An investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit and the Hackensack Police Department revealed that DIOR ALSTON fatally shot Nieves and that MALIK ABEL acted as an accomplice to the shooting, while RAYSHAWN POWEL-MYHAND attempted to conceal evidence of the crimes.
On Thursday, November 17, 2022, DIOR ALSTON was arrested and charged with first-degree murder, N.J.S.A. 2C:11-3a(1) and N.J.S.A. 2C:11-3b; first-degree attempted murder, N.J.S.A. 2C:5-1/11-3; first-degree conspiracy to commit murder, N.J.S.A. 2C:5-2; second-degree possession of a firearm for an unlawful purpose, N.J.S.A. 2C:39-4a; second-degree unlawful possession of a handgun, N.J.S.A. 2C:39-5b; and fourth-degree stalking, N.J.S.A. 2C:12-10. ALSTON was remanded to the Bergen County Jail pending
his first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack, NJ.
On Thursday, November 17, 2022, MALIK ABEL was arrested and charged with first-degree murder, N.J.S.A. 2C:11-3a(1) and N.J.S.A. 2C:11-3b; first-degree attempted murder, N.J.S.A. 2C:5-1/11-3; first-degree conspiracy to commit murder, N.J.S.A. 2C:5-2; second-degree possession of a firearm for an unlawful purpose, N.J.S.A. 2C:39-4a; second-degree unlawful possession of a handgun, N.J.S.A. 2C:39-5b; and fourth-degree stalking, N.J.S.A. 2C:12-10. ABEL was remanded to the Bergen County Jail pending his
first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack, NJ.
On Thursday, November 17, 2022, RAYSHAWN POWEL-MYHAND was arrested and charged with third-degree hindering apprehension, N.J.S.A. 2C:29-3a(3) and was remanded to the Bergen County Jail pending his first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack, NJ.
Prosecutor Musella states that the charges are merely accusations and that the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, and he would also like to thank the Hackensack Police Department, the Maywood Police Department, the South Hackensack Police Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office for their assistance in this investigation.