Anthony Reciofigueroa, of Jersey City, was found guilty Thursday, June 9 of first-degree murder, second-degree unlawful possession of a weapon, and second-degree possession of a weapon for unlawful purposes after a three-week trial, Union County Prosecutor William A. Daniel said in a joint release.
Reciofigueroa was accused of shooting 19-year-old Carlos Rodriguez, who was discovered by officers on the sidewalk of East Jersey Street in Elizabeth just after 7 p.m. on July 6, 2019, the prosecutor's office said.
The teen was taken to University Hospital in Newark, where he was pronounced dead the next day, Elizabeth Police Director Earl Graves and Elizabeth Police Chief Giacomo Sacca said.
Local and state law enforcement agencies later identified Reciofigueroa as the gunman using surveillance video of the deadly shooting, they said.
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, prosecutors said.
Reciofigueroa was eventually extradited from Vermont while incarcerated there on an unrelated matter, authorities said.
His sentencing has been scheduled for Friday, August 5 before Union County Superior Court Judge John Deitch.
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