Authorities are searching for a 51-year-old Toms River man charged with murder in the fatal shooting of another man in a Wawa parking lot Friday morning, according to the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office.
An arrest warrant has been issued for Douglas Cobb, who is accused of shooting and killing Bruce Gress, 42, of Toms River, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer said Saturday. Cobb remained at large and was considered a fugitive.
Cobb is charged with murder, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, unlawful possession of a weapon and being a certain person prohibited from possessing a weapon, prosecutors said. His name has been entered into the National Crime Information Center database.
Toms River Township police were called at about 7:20 a.m. Friday to the Wawa at the corner of Route 37 and Garfield Avenue after receiving a report that someone had been shot. The shooting prompted a large response from local and county law enforcement agencies.
Officers found Gress suffering from a gunshot wound to the head. Emergency medical personnel transported him to Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune, where he was pronounced dead, prosecutors said.
Video from the scene Friday showed police tape surrounding a pickup truck as investigators processed the vehicle and the surrounding parking lot.
An investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit, the Toms River Township Police Department Detective Bureau and the Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit identified Cobb as the suspected shooter, according to Billhimer.
Authorities have not publicly disclosed what led to the shooting. Early reports indicated investigators were examining whether a dispute preceded the gunfire, but prosecutors have not announced a motive.
Cobb is also known as Douglas Green and goes by the nickname “Bootknock,” Billhimer said.
Authorities say he was last seen driving a black 2016 Acura MDX with New Jersey license plate T93YJL.
“Our focus now is to locate Douglas Cobb and bring him into custody,” Billhimer said. “We ask anyone that knows Cobb to advise him to turn himself in peacefully.”
The search has drawn assistance from numerous local, county and federal agencies, including the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Narcotics Strike Force, Ocean County Sheriff’s Office, Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, South Toms River police, Freehold Borough police, Ocean County Medical Examiner’s Office and U.S. Marshals Service.
“Great teamwork has been exhibited by all of the respective law enforcement agencies and officers involved in this investigation,” Billhimer said.
Authorities asked anyone with credible information about Cobb’s whereabouts to contact the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit at 732-929-2027 or the Toms River Township Police Department at 732-349-0150.
The investigation remains active.
The charges against Cobb are accusations, and he is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
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