A man has been handed a 35-year prison sentence for the fatal stabbing of a New York resident in a bustling shopping center parking lot.
Augusto Perez, a resident of North Bergen, received his sentencing on Wednesday after being convicted of aggravated manslaughter and hindering apprehension, as reported by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office.
The verdict came following a six-week trial in which a jury found two defendants guilty earlier this year. The sad incident occurred on February 16, 2021, at the Bergen Town Centre in Maywood.
The 911 call came in at 6:05 p.m., reporting a stabbing at the huge shopping center located just off Route 4, which houses 85 stores and eateries.
When officials came, they found the victim, Omar Cruz, a 64-year-old Albany resident, lying in a pool of blood behind the Ulta Beauty store.
Cruz had numerous stab wounds and a trail of blood in the parking lot that led back to the location of his body, according to police reports from that day.
Despite his terrible injuries, Cruz was able to notify officers at the scene that Perez had stabbed him. Officers immediately transported him to Hackensack University Medical Center, where they subsequently pronounced him deceased.
The next day, authorities caught Perez at his house, ending the manhunt. His sentencing brings an end to a case that has had a significant impact on the local community.
Perez now faces 35 years in prison for his conduct, providing some closure to Cruz’s family, albeit the loss is enormous.
