Sunbury, Pa. — A district attorney filed a motion last week to keep the public out of preliminary hearings scheduled for two defendants for a high-profile homicide case in Sunbury.
The defendants, Naseir Deante Robinson, 24, of Sunbury, and Carnel Dio Shelborne Jr., 21, of Nescopeck, were charged with murder and conspiracy to commit murder for the fatal shooting of Dayveon Creel of Sunbury. The shooting occurred on Aug. 15 outside of the Northumberland County Courthouse. It happened just as the attempted homicide trial for Anthony Moultrie and Francky Riche went on break for lunch.
A third person charged in relation to the shooting, Denarii Kadeem Springs, 26, of Northumberland, remains at large, according to Sunbury Police.
Related Reading: Two in custody for shooting outside of Northumberland County Courthouse, one still at large
O'Donnell wrote in the motion that, "due to the ongoing threat of violence, threat to the safety of courthouse staff and safety of the public, the exclusion of the public is necessary." A stenographer will be present during the preliminary hearings planned for 1:30 p.m. Sept. 17 at the office of District Judge Rachel Wiest-Benner in Sunbury. Their transcript will be available to the public. O'Donnell also noted in the motion that members of the media will not be excluded as part of the order.
No ruling has been made yet on the motion. The motion was filed on Aug. 20 at Wiest-Benner's office and was moved to Northumberland County Court of Common Pleas for consideration. Northumberland County Judge Paige Rosini is set to hear arguments on Sept. 12.
The homicide that occurred on Aug. 15 is part of an ongoing dispute that is linked to the attempted homicide trial of Moultrie and Riche, as well as the homicide trial of Ajani Munsch-Ousha Uhuru, according to the motion.
Uhuru's homicide trial was held in May. He was found guilty of shooting and killing Kareem Jakes, 30, of Sunbury, on May 19, 2022, outside of the Penn Jersey Food Mart on North Fourth Street in Sunbury. O'Donnell noted in the motion that during Uhuru's trial, "two large bags of cocaine were found in the courthouse and courtroom two reeked of marijuana." O'Donnell also noted that during that trial, Judge Rosini ordered the public out of the courtroom due to the outbursts of several individuals in the gallery. There also were multiple instances of threatening behavior, including gang signs, stare-downs, and other gestures from members of the public, according to the motion.
The attempted homicide trial earlier this month for Moultrie and Riche was for a shooting from June 2022 that was alleged to be a retaliation shooting against one of Uhuru's relatives. For that trial, witnesses for the prosecution raised concerns of witness intimidation and their safety if they testified, O'Donnell wrote in the motion.
Robinson testified during the Moultrie and Riche trial. At the start of lunch break, Robinson left the courthouse through the front door along with Springs, Shelborne, Desaree Gonzalez, and Aliyah Moten, who also testified. Creel was standing by a white sedan in the parking lot at the nearby Weis Markets store at the time when he was shot in the chest and killed.
Police pulled surveillance video that showed a car driven by Robinson with Shelborne as a passenger as well as a car driven by Desaree Gonzalez pulled in behind the white sedan, boxing Creel in. Springs was in a silver Jeep that parked next to Creel and he allegedly pulled out a handgun and shot Creel as he was backing out of the parking space, according to court documents. Springs, along with the vehicles driven by Gonzalez and Robinson, fled the scene.
First-degree murder charges were filed against Springs, who has been on the run for just over two weeks now.
Robinson and Shelborne were arraigned on Aug. 16 by Wiest-Benner, who denied bail. Shleborne is currently incarcerated at Montour County Prison. Robinson is being housed at Columbia County Prison.
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