MOTHER OF 2015 HOMICIDE VICTIM MAKES PLEA TO PUBLIC FOR INFORMATION ON CASE

The mother of 2015 homicide victim Darcel Rivers, Ms. Deloris Gibson, is making a plea to the public to come forward with information on her son’s homicide. Ms. Gibson said she remembers the day her son was murdered like it was yesterday.

“It was June 2nd, 2015, and at the Boys and Girls Club of Hoboken where I am the director, we had all dressed in orange in recognition of Gun Violence Awareness Day. Two days later, my son, Darcel Rivers, was shot to death.”

Rivers, age 35, was visiting Jersey City from Rhode Island where he was in culinary school when he was shot and killed. He was only a few steps from his mother’s house when the shooting occurred. On June 4, 2015, just after 3:45 a.m., Jersey City police received a 911 call of an unresponsive male lying on the sidewalk in front of 117 Fulton Avenue.

Responding officers, along with EMS, observed the victim bleeding from his head with an apparent gunshot wound. The victim – later identified as Darcel Rivers – was transported to the Jersey City Medical Center where he was pronounced deceased at 4:15 a.m. The cause of death was determined to be from a gunshot wound and the manner of death was determined to be homicide.

“Darcel was a big clown – that was my clown – the way he would make me laugh. He was a good person and he loved to be around kids,” Gibson said recently. “He always wanted to be a chef and that was one of his dreams he accomplished before he was taken from us. He did it and I am always going to proud of him.”

“He used to be the first one of my kids to call me on my birthday and on Mother’s Day, he would always have to be the first to call at 4:30 a.m. He said, ‘I am the one that made you a mother, so I gotta be the first one to call you’ and that was one of his traditions every year,” Gibson said.

Gibson said that while she has personally taken the loss very hard, his four children Zaire Rivers, 18, Zyla Rivers, 10, Zakie Rivers, 8, and Zaria Rivers, 7, have been especially impacted with the loss of their father.

“I want to tell whoever did this, ‘You took a very beloved father away from his kids. He enjoyed life – he would never take a life. The person who did this, how does that sit on your conscious?’” said Gibson. “We just want to know who did this and why? Why? Anybody who has info we would be so grateful. His kids need closure, so please just think about them.” “I am hoping someone out there who has information will have a heart and will do the right thing,” added Gibson.

The Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office Homicide Unit continues to actively investigate this case. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Office of the Hudson County Prosecutor at 201-915-1345 or to leave an anonymous tip at: http://www.hudsoncountyprosecutorsofficenj.org/ homicide-tip/. All information will be kept confidential.