Burglary Suspect Linked to Home Invasion, Cops Allege

Steven T. Key, one of three men who were , has been charged as a suspect in a violent home invasion that took place in Hamilton Township, Hamilton police announced yesterday (June 13).

In a news release, Hamilton police said Key, 18, of the 300 block of William Street in Trenton, is alleged to be one of two men who committed the home invasion on Reed Avenue in Hamilton about 1:30 a.m. on May 29.

“Two black males assaulted the victim outside the residence,” Hamilton police said in the release. “The two black males then entered the home, each taking a knife from the kitchen and threatening the victim and homeowners at knifepoint. Taken during the robbery was $5,000 in cash and the victims’ cell phones along with personal items contained in their purse and wallets.”

Hamilton Detective Ken Warner identified Key as a suspect and has charged him with robbery, criminal restraint and burglary in connection with the May 29 crime, Hamilton police said.

Key has been lodged at the Mercer County Correction Center in Hopewell Township ever since he was arrested by Lawrence Township police Detective William Chester on June 5 and charged with burglary and theft in connection with the break-in and car thefts that took place on the Lawrence Township side of Pear Street about 2 a.m. on May 24.

Lawrence Township police allege that Key and two other men – Brandon James, 18, of Trenton, and Daivaughn Ward, 20, of Hamilton Township – broke into the house on Pear Street and stole thousands of dollars worth of electronics – including televisions, cameras and laptop computers – and sets of car keys while residents were in the home sleeping. Two cars, a 1997 Buick and a 1999 Pontiac, were also stolen from the home’s driveway, however both vehicles were located abandoned in Trenton later that day.

James and Ward were arrested in Pennsylvania following a brief car chase and foot pursuit that began about 11:15 p.m. on May 24 after a Morrisville (Pa.) police officer spotted them in a Toyota that had been stolen that morning from a home on the Trenton side of Pear Street. A second Toyota stolen from the same house on the Trenton side of Pear Street was located in a nearby convenience store parking lot by Falls Township (Pa.) officers when they caught up with James.

The house on the Trenton side of Pear Street that was broken into in the early hours of May 24 sits just a few doors away from the Lawrence Township house that was burglarized on Pear Street that same morning. As in the Lawrence crime, thousands of dollars worth of electronics and car keys were reported to have been stolen from the Trenton home.

Key is being held at the Mercer County Correction Center in lieu of $25,000 full cash bail on charges filed by Lawrence police and another $100,000 full cash bail on the charges filed by Hamilton police.

Ward and James, meanwhile, remain in custody at the Bucks County Correctional Facility and are awaiting extradition to New Jersey.