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Christopher "Chato" Aparicio-Reyes, 28, must serve at least 25 years of his sentence prior to the possibility of parole under the provisions of New Jersey’s No Early Release Act, according to Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond S. Santiago.
The 40-year-old victim reportedly stole cocaine and a $50 bill from Aparicio-Reyes as he snorted, sparking an argument and fatal beating, according to earlier news accounts.
After his first trial, Aparicio-Reyes was convicted and sentenced to life in prison until an appellate panel overturned it on procedural grounds in August 2021, and ordered a new trial.
At trial, Aparicio-Reyes conceded he killed Jennifer Pizzuto, albeit not purposely, but justified his actions by claiming Pizzuto had stolen from him and that he was drinking and using cocaine on the night of her murder, prosecutors have said.
Aparicio-Reyes and the victim did not know one another before that night.
Shortly after 10:30 p.m. on Dec. 13, 2015, Long Branch police responded to a home on the 100 block of Rockwell Avenue. Police found Pizzuto in an upstairs bedroom, having sustained numerous severe injuries, Santiago said. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
A fast-moving investigation involving members of the MCPO Major Crimes Bureau and the Long Branch Police Department resulted in Aparicio-Reyes being identified as a suspect, and he was apprehended in Long Branch shortly after 3 p.m. the next day, found hiding at a friend’s house – before he could follow through on a plan to flee across the country, the prosecutor said.
Evidence presented during a trial that ended in May 2018 revealed that Aparicio-Reyes had strangled Pizzuto after brutally beating her about her face and head following an argument, causing her death, Santiago said.
Pizzuto was discovered with numerous lacerations on her face and head in several areas, including on her lips and tongue after three of her teeth were knocked out, the prosecutor's office previously said. A forensics expert determined that Aparicio-Reyes inflicted these injuries through repeated blows, both while Pizzuto was standing and after she had fallen to the floor, prosecutors said. Lastly, an autopsy revealed Aparicio-Reyes killed Pizzuto by squeezing her neck until she lost consciousness and eventually died with his arms still wrapped around her neck, prosecutors said.
After consulting with Pizzuto’s surviving family, plea negotiations resulted in Aparicio-Reyes pleading guilty to aggravated manslaughter in May 2023, Santiago said.
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