A man in town to celebrate at the No Class Reunion for Montclair High School never made it - because he was shot in a park in Newark, by an Under sheriff.
Defarra Ivan Gaymon had told old friends he'd be at the reunion on July 17. But, for some reason, he stopped at Branch Brook Park in Newark.
When the Essex County Prosecutor's Office announced a man had been shot, as part of an undercover operation in Branchbrook Park on July 16, no identity was released.
The shooting victim had been rushed to University Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 9:00 p.m.
Last night, it was revealed the identity of Defarra Ivan Gaymon,48 of Suwanee, Georgia, who died here in New Jersey during a trip, was not what you may have expected to find in a police related shooting at night in a dark park.
Gaymon was the President of Credit Union of Atlanta.
Here is his bio, from his web site at the Bank.
"DeFarra “Dean” Gaymon is the President/CEO of Credit Union of Atlanta (CUA) formerly Atlanta City Employees Credit Union. As a firm believer in servant leadership, Dean has positioned CUA as a financial leader in the field of community development."
The undercover Sheriff's Detective was in the area of the Park investigating complaints of sexual activity occurring in public when the incident occurred.
It is unclear at this point what Gaymon was doing in the park and what exactly transpired that caused the detective to shoot Gaymon.
On the Credit Union Bank's website, it noted "He has a passion for Financial Literacy, Development and Education within the community. Proving himself to be an advocate of the founding credit union core principle of “Cooperation among Cooperatives,” Dean has fostered community collaborations with a myriad of organizations."
Gaymon was the Vice President of the Summit Trust Company here in New Jersey from June 1986 - March 1992, and was located in Summit.
So what happened?
At the time of his shooting by the Under sheriff, he was not in his truck, which was parked nearby.
Was this an undercover investigation that went
horribly wrong? The prosecutor's office noted they were there to investigate "sexual activity". But, why would anyone get shot because of "sexual activity"?
The married shooting victim is now dead, and an investigation is being conducted by the Prosecutor's HomicideSquad and Professional Standards Bureau in conjunction with the Essex County Sheriff's Department's Internal Affairs Unit.
