Long Branch Man Convicted Of Attempted Murder: Shot Victim At Least 10 Times

FREEHOLD – A Monmouth County jury has found a Long Branch man guilty of first-degree murder for an April 2014 incident where he shot a Red Bank man more than 10 times, Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni said.

Anthony Sims was also found guilty of second degree unlawful possession of a firearm and second-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose.

The victim, Perry Veney, survived the shooting. He was sitting in the driver's seat of his car in front of his gramdmother's house at 13 Willow Street on April 9, 2014, when Sims approached him with a semi-automatic handgun and fired 15 rounds into Veney's car, Gramiccioni said.

Veney was struck more than 10 times and had to be airlifted to Jersey Shore University Medical Center, where he underwent multiple surgeries.

Sims was arrested on April 14, 2014, after a joint investigation by the Red Bank Police Department and the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office. Sims was under parole supervision for a previous Red Bank conviction of attempted manslaughter, after he was released from state prison on Jan. 13, 2014, Gramiccioni said.

Monmouth County Superior Court Judge Thomas F. Scully is due to sentence Sims on Aug. 18, 2017. Sims faces a minimum sentence of 20 years in state prison and a maximum of life. Any sentence imposed will require Sims to serve 85 percent of the term before being eligible for parole, pursuant to the No Early Release Act.

Image: Patch file photo.