Man Pleads Guilty To Shooting At Tuckerton Police Officer

TUCKERTON, NJ — A man has pleaded guilty to attempted murder in a 2019 shooting that involved a Tuckerton police officer, the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office announced Friday.

Miguel Angel-Villegas, 31, of New Haven, Connecticut, pled guilty Friday to attempted murder and hindering apprehension or prosecution in the Nov. 21, 2019 shooting, Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer said.

On Nov. 21, 2019, Angel-Villegas was a passenger in a car that fled a motor vehicle stop in Tuckerton. His girlfriend was driving when a Tuckerton officer pulled them over, Billhimer said. She sped away and hit another vehicle.

Angel-Villegas got out and started firing at the officer before escaping on foot, according to authorities. The officer wasn't injured.

Subsequent investigation determined that Angel-Villegas ordered the woman to give the officer a fake name, Billhimer said. He also threatened her with a handgun and forced her to speed away, according to the OCPO's investigation.

A daylong manhunt ended when authorities captured Angel-Villegas that evening in New York Penn Station.

Angel-Villegas has been lodged in the Ocean County Jail since the incident.

His sentencing has been scheduled for Sept. 27, 2021. He faces 15 years for attempted murder and five years for hindering. The sentences will run concurrently.

The attempted murder charge falls under the No Early Release Act, requiring Angel-Villegas to serve at least 85 percent of the sentence before being eligible for parole, Billhimer said.

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