By: Najla Alexander
Authorities in Atlantic County announced that on Thursday, August 22, Angelo Delgado, 22, from Atlantic City, pleaded guilty to first-degree Felony Murder in connection with the 2018 death of Sunil Edla, 61, of Ventnor.
Officials stated the recommended sentence is 30 years in New Jersey State Prison.
He must serve all 30 years before becoming eligible for parole, officials say.
According to officials, Delgado was 16 years old at the time of the homicide and had been waived up from juvenile court and detained on murder, carjacking, robbery, and weapons charges.
During the plea, authorities say, Delgado admitted that while trying to steal Edla’s car, Delgado shot Edla and fled the area in Edla’s Subaru.
Officials say the Ventnor City Police Department received a 9-1-1 call on November 15, 2018, at 8:04 p.m., that a man, later identified as Edla, was lying in a driveway on N. Nashville Avenue.
Police located the victim in front of 6 N. Nashville Avenue with suspected gunshot wounds, and officials said Edla was pronounced deceased at the scene.
Edla’s vehicle, a 2002 Subaru Forester, was missing from the scene, officials stated.
Authorities say the vehicle was subsequently found by officers of the Atlantic City Police Department in the 1600 block of Sewell Avenue in Atlantic City.
Officials said the investigation by the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office’s Major Crimes Unit, the Ventnor City Police Department, and the Atlantic City Police Department led to the identification and arrest of Delgado on the morning of November 16, 2018.
The Atlantic City SWAT team arrested the defendant without incident in the 1500 block of Sewell Avenue, according to officials.
Officials stated that Chief Assistant Prosecutor Kathleen Robinson represents the State in this matter.
Sentencing is scheduled for September, officials say.