ASBURY PARK – An Asbury Park teen has been sentenced to New Jersey State Prison for shooting a Brick Memorial High School student.
On October 22, 2019, Brick Township Police responded to a call about a student at Brick Memorial High School who sustained a gunshot wound.
Investigation revealed that the victim was walking home from school with three friends when he was shot. He was about one-quarter mile away from Brick Memorial when he was shot and ran back to the school for help.
Due to the incident, Brick Township Police and school officials locked down the high school and neighboring to make sure the students were not in any immediate danger. The victim was then sent to Ocean Medical Center in Brick Township to be treated for his injuries.
During investigation, Detectives from the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit, Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office High Tech Crime Unit, Brick Township Police Department, and Ocean County Sheriff’s Office reviewed video surveillance footage from nearby residences. Detectives identified Alonzo Legrande, 18, of Asbury Park, who was 17-years-old at the time and Luis Rivas, who was also a juvenile, as the suspects carrying out the shooting. It was later discovered that Legrande was the individual who fired the weapon.
Legrande was apprehended on October 23, 2019, and has been lodged in the Ocean County Juvenile Detention Center since his apprehension.
Rivas, who likewise agreed to be prosecuted as an adult, previously pled guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Aggravated Assault and was sentenced on October 2, 2020 to four years NJSP subject to the terms of the No Early Release Act.
On January 14, it was announced that Legrande was sentenced to 10 years New Jersey State Prison (NJSP) as a result of a previously entered guilty plea to Aggravated Assault. This sentence is subject to the terms of the No Early Release Act, N.J., meaning that Legrande will be required to serve at least 85 percent of his sentence before he may be considered for parole eligibility.
Additionally, Legrande was sentenced to 10 years NJSP relative to his previously entered guilty plea to Possession of a Weapon for an Unlawful. The sentences will run concurrently.
Legrande entered his guilty plea to both charges on September 17, 2020. Legrande’s guilty pleas were contemplated in connection with his voluntary waiver of the Family Court’s jurisdiction in this matter, and his further agreement to be charged and prosecuted as an adult in Criminal Court.
“Our law enforcement partners at the local, county, state and federal levels displayed tremendous teamwork and cooperation in connection with this very thorough investigation,” Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer stated. “As a result of their exceptional efforts, both Rivas and Legrande been held accountable for their brazen lawlessness with these state prison sentences,” Prosecutor Billhimer stated.
