FREEHOLD, NJ – Christopher Aparicio-Reyes, a local man who admitted to killing a woman in his Long Branch home in 2015, has been sentenced to 30 years in state prison, as announced by Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond S. Santiago on Tuesday.
Under the provisions of New Jersey’s No Early Release Act (NERA), Aparicio-Reyes, aged 28, must serve at least 85 percent of his sentence before becoming eligible for parole. Monmouth County Superior Court Judge Joseph W. Oxley presided over the sentencing.
The incident occurred on Sunday, December 13, 2015, around 10:30 p.m., when officers from the Long Branch Police Department responded to a home on Rockwell Avenue. There, they found 40-year-old Jennifer Pizzuto in an upstairs bedroom with severe injuries. Unfortunately, she was pronounced dead at the scene.
A swift and thorough investigation by the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Bureau and the Long Branch Police Department led to the identification of Christopher Aparicio-Reyes as a suspect. He was apprehended the following day in Long Branch at a friend’s house, moments before he could attempt to flee across the country.
During the trial that concluded in May 2018, evidence revealed that Aparicio-Reyes had strangled Pizzuto after brutally beating her during an argument, causing her death. He was convicted at the trial and initially sentenced to life in prison. However, an appellate panel overturned his conviction on procedural grounds in August 2021, leading to a new trial.
After consultation with Jennifer Pizzuto’s surviving family, plea negotiations were reached, resulting in Aparicio-Reyes pleading guilty to Aggravated Manslaughter in May 2023.