Man Gets 55 Years After Fatal Union Co. Shooting: Prosecutor

UNION COUNTY, NJ — A Jersey City man was sentenced to 55 years in state prison for the murder and fatal shooting of Elizabeth resident Carlos Rodriguez a little more than three years ago, Union County Prosecutor William A. Daniel announced Wednesday.

A jury found Anthony Reciofigeroa, 28, guilty of murder, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and possession of a weapon on June 9, prosecutors said.

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

Reciofigeroa is required to serve at least 85 percent of his 55-year sentence on the murder charge before the possibility of parole, according to prosecutors. The judge also sentenced him to eight years with a four year period of parole ineligibility on each of the weapons charges and ordered those sentences to be served concurrently with his sentence.

Gunshots fired on the 500 block of East Jersey Street in Elizabeth on July 6, 2019 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, assisted by the Vermont State Police and Jersey City Police Department, resulted in Reciofigeroa being identified as the shooter in the case.

When Reciofigueroa was 18 years old, he was also 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.