Man Found Guilty Of Killing 19-Year-Old Union Co. Man: Prosecutors

UNION COUNTY, NJ — A Jersey City man was found guilty of shooting a 19-year-old Elizabeth man in July 2019, which resulted in his death, Union County Prosecutor William A. Daniel, Elizabeth Police Director Earl Graves and Elizabeth Police Chief Giacomo Sacca jointly announced Tuesday.

Anthony Reciofigueroa, 27, of Jersey City was found guilty Thursday on one count each of first-degree murder, second-degree unlawful possession of a weapon and second-degree possession of a weapon for unlawful purposes.

The charges came after a three-week trial before Union County Superior Court Judge John Deitch.

Gunshots fired on the 500 block of East Jersey Street in Elizabeth led police officers to find 19-year-old Carlos Rodriguez of Elizabeth on the sidewalk, having sustained a gunshot wound, according to prosecutors.

Rodriguez was rushed to University Hospital in Newark where he was pronounced dead the next day, prosecutors said.

An investigation involving the Union County Homicide Task Force, Elizabeth Police Department, Union County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Unit, and Union County Police Department Ballistics Unit resulted in Reciofigueroa being identified as a suspect in the case.

Reciofigueroa was eventually extradited from Vermont while incarcerated there on an unrelated matter.

When Reciofigueroa was 18 years old, he was charged with making terroristic threats and unlawful possession of a weapon back in 2013.

Read more: 18-Year-Old Jersey City Man Arrested After Allegedly Brandishing Gun

At trial, it was revealed that Reciofigueroa arrived in Elizabeth approximately 30 minutes before the shooting in a black Chevy Malibu with Vermont license plates, according to prosecutors.

Witnesses, physical evidence and video surveillance in the area, which captured the shooting, were able to definitively pinpoint Reciofigueroa as a suspect, prosecutors said.

Sentencing has been scheduled for Friday, Aug. 5 before Judge Deitch, at which time Reciofigueroa can face a sentence of up to life in state prison.