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Three Asbury Park men were charged with the 2009 murder of a Red Bank school teacher, Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni announced Wednesday.

James Fair, 27, Ebenezer Byrd, 35, and Gregory Jean-Baptiste, 26, all of Asbury Park, are charged with first degree felony murder, first degree robbery, second degree conspiracy, second degree burglary, second degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, second degree unlawful possession of a weapon and the second degree charge of being certain persons not to be in possession of weapons.

All three men are currently incarcerated on unrelated charges, Gramiccioni said.

Neptune Police responded to a 911 call for an unresponsive woman found in her Brighton Arms apartment on West Sylvania Avenue near 9:07 a.m. Sept. 14, 2009.

When officers arrived they found 33-year-old Jonelle Melton, a veteran Red Bank Middle School educator and active member of her community and church. Monmouth Ocean Hospital Services Corporation [MONOC] paramedics pronounced her dead at the scene.

A joint investigation by the Neptune City Police Department and the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office continued over the course of the past six years and was one of the first cases to utilize the Monmouth County Crime Stoppers anonymous tip line and reward program, Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office spokesman Charles Webster said.

Detectives learned that while Fair, Byrd, and Jean-Baptiste planned to burglarize a specific apartment in the Brighton Arms complex, they broke into the wrong apartment and encountered Melton.  After realizing they were in the wrong apartment, the men brutally murdered Melton.

Fair is awaiting trial on a 219-count indictment charging him with racketeering conspiracy, attempted murder, robbery, and numerous other drug and weapons offenses, arising from the October 2014 gang roundup known as “Operation Dead End.” Fair is currently being held at Monmouth County Jail in Freehold, Webster said.

Byrd is currently serving a 12-year state prison sentence for two separate Asbury Park shootings that occurred in 2009. He is being held at New Jersey State Prison in Trenton, Webster said.

Jean-Baptiste is awaiting trial on three separate indictments charging him with drug distribution and gun possession. He is being held at the Mercer County Jail in Hopewell Township, Webster said.

All three men are being held in lieu of a $1.5 million cash only bail, set by Monmouth County Superior Court Judge Joseph W. Oxley. A bail source hearing is required before they can be released, Webster said.

If convicted of the felony murder charge, each of the men face 30 years to life in a state prison. There would be no possibility of parole and the maximum sentence is subject to the “No Early Release Act,” [NERA] requiring them to serve 85 percent of any sentence imposed in excess of 30 years.

If convicted of first degree robbery, each face a maximum 20 years in state prison, subject to the NERA.

If convicted of second degree conspiracy or second degree burglary, each man faces up to 10 years in state prison, also subject to the NERA.

The men also face a maximum 10 years for each of the Possession of a firearm for an unlawful purpose, unlawful possession of a firearm, and the certain person charges.

The case is being prosecuted by Monmouth County First Assistant Prosecutor Marc C. LeMieux and Assistant Prosecutor Matthew Bogner.

Despite these arrests, the investigation into Melton’s murder remains ongoing and detectives continue to pursue additional leads, Webster said.

Anyone with information related to the investigation can contact Detective Scott Samis of the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office at 1-800-533-7443; Detective Lieutenant Matt Quagliato of the Neptune City Police Department at 732-775-1615; the confidential Monmouth County Crime Stoppers line at 1-800-671-4400; text “MONMOUTH” with their tip to 274637; or email via the website at www.monmouthcountycrimestoppers.com.

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