NEWARK — A Belleville man who was shot and killed in Newark early this morning was under indictment in the shooting death of a toddler two years ago, authorities said.

Wakir Bryant, 29, was found just after 1 a.m. near the intersection of Renner and Peshine avenues in the city’s South Ward, said Kathy Carter, a spokeswoman for the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office.

He was one of two people killed in the city in a four-hour span Wednesday night and early this morning.

Bryant was indicted last year in the Dec. 30, 2011, death of 2-year-old Mikhy Robinson. The five-count indictment accused him of reckless manslaughter, endangering the welfare of a child, hindering apprehension and two weapons charges.

This morning, a Newark police officer found Bryant unconscious inside a parked vehicle near Peshine and Renner avenues, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn Murray said. The officers called for medical assistance, but Bryant was pronounced dead minutes later.

Prosecutors later called the attack a "targeted shooting." Bryant's manslaughter case had reached an appellate court Tuesday as the 29-year-old continued to try and have the indictment dismissed, Carter said.

The court had yet to make a ruling, and Bryant was free on bail at the time of his death, Murray said.

Investigators alleged the toddler died of a gunshot wound fired from Bryant’s gun in the St. James Place home where the boy lived with his mother, who was dating Bryant at the time. Prosecutors had not yet said whether they believe Bryant pulled the trigger.

After the shooting, Bryant dropped his girlfriend and her wounded son off at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center, where the boy died, authorities have said.

Bryant was tracked down by detectives some 12 hours later, arrested and charged.

The death and manslaughter charges were the last in a long series of arrests on drugs and weapons charges for Bryant since 2000, authorities have also said.

Bryant was one of two people killed in Newark in the past 24 hours. Around 9:40 p.m. Wednesday, 21-year-old city resident Stefan McCowen was gunned down in the 500 block of South 18th Street, Carter said.

McCowen's body was found in the rear of an apartment complex and he was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Carter, who declined to comment on a motive.

Star-Ledger staff writer James Queally contributed to this report.

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