Dead man in trunk identified as U.S. Army vet

Once a child slave in his native Liberia, Dardar Paye grew up to be a U.S. Army veteran and a convicted felon.

But early yesterday, Paye's life took one final, violent turn when his dead body was found in the trunk of one of three vehicles that led cops on a pursuit from Trenton into Bucks County, police said.

"He came from an incredibly horrible and violent life, beginning from the moment of his birth right up until his death," said Paye's immigration lawyer, Craig Shagin.

Paye, 33, of Maplewood, N.J., was found dead of a gunshot wound in the trunk of a Buick sedan that had been pulled over on Route 1 near the Oxford Valley exit shortly after 1 a.m., police said. The driver of that car, Phobus Sullivan, 27, of Trenton, tried to escape on foot but was quickly caught, police said. The passenger, Mack Edwards, 25, also of Trenton, was taken into custody without incident, according to authorities.

Police had chased the Buick, a van and an unidentified third vehicle from an area in Trenton where a rash of recent home invasions have occurred, Pennsylvania State Police said. The unidentified car was able to escape but the Buick was stopped on Route 1 and the van was stopped by state police with spike strips along I-95. Two men in the van, Danuweli Keller, 23, of Hamilton, NJ, and Adutawab Kiazolu, 22, of Trenton, are in custody in Bucks County Prison in lieu of $5 million bail each, state police said.

All four men are in Pennsylvania awaiting extradition to New Jersey. None have been officially charged with homicide, police said.

Paye was facing deportation for conviction on felony gun trafficking charges, despite his years of honorable military service, Shagin said.

"It's a tragic end to a very tragic life," he said.