The pre-dawn silence of South Trenton was shattered by gunfire just after midnight, and in an instant, a city’s technological sentinel sounded the alarm. But for 19-year-old Tommy Febles, the rapid response was too late.
Authorities are now hunting for a killer after the Trenton resident was found shot and killed early Friday morning on the 200 block of Centre Street. The Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office confirmed the grim discovery, made at approximately 12:39 a.m., after the city’s advanced gunfire-detection system, ShotSpotter, alerted officers to the precise location of the shooting.
Police arrived on the scene within minutes, a testament to the technology deployed to combat street violence. There, they found Febles, a young man whose life was cut devastatingly short, suffering from a critical gunshot wound to the head. Despite their efforts, he was pronounced dead at the location where he fell.
The Mercer County Homicide Task Force has taken the reins of the investigation, which is now a full-blown homicide probe. As of now, no suspects are in custody and no arrests have been made. The streets that echoed with gunfire have now fallen into a silence of a different kind—one of fear and unanswered questions.
Leading the charge for answers are Homicide Sgt. Will Jett and Detective Zach Ortman. The investigators are pleading with the community for help, urging anyone with even the smallest piece of information to come forward to help bring justice for Tommy Febles.
In a city where technology can pinpoint tragedy in an instant, it is now human courage and cooperation that authorities are counting on to solve this crime. Anyone with information is strongly encouraged to contact Sgt. Jett or Det. Ortman at 609-331-5010 or the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office tip line at 609-273-2451.