A 66-year-old Newburgh, New York man has been convicted in the Fourth of July ambush shooting that left a 19-year-old Nutley man critically wounded outside his mother's home, even as the person who actually pulled the trigger remains unidentified more than a year later. An Essex County jury found Armando Villareal Mena guilty on Oct. 23 of first-degree conspiracy to commit murder, first-degree attempted murder and second-degree aggravated assault.
According to the Essex County Prosecutor's Office, Mena and an unidentified co-conspirator drove from Newburgh to the home of Jahniel Perez's mother in Nutley on July 4, 2025. Surveillance video captured the vehicle circling the block before it stopped in front of the house, prosecutors said.
Mena is seen on that surveillance footage smashing a window on the mother's car in what investigators described as a deliberate move to lure Perez outside, per the prosecutor's office. Once Perez emerged, the co-conspirator opened fire, unleashing 12 shots while Mena drove the vehicle toward the teen, prosecutors said. Perez was struck four times.
Mother Rushed Wounded Teen to the Hospital
With the getaway vehicle already damaged, Perez's mother put her son in that same car and drove him to a local hospital for emergency treatment, according to the prosecutor's office. Mena and the co-conspirator fled the scene immediately after the shooting, as reported by News12 New Jersey.
Detectives caught up with Mena three days later, arresting him in Newburgh while he was behind the wheel of the same suspect vehicle, the prosecutor's office said. During questioning by the Essex County Prosecutor's Office Homicide Task Force, Mena admitted to being the driver during the attack, according to the same source.
Shooter Still Unidentified More Than a Year Later
Despite Mena's conviction, the person who fired the shots that struck Perez has never been identified. The prosecutor's office says the identity of the shooter remains unknown and that the investigation is active and ongoing. Daily Voice and NJ 101.5 have also covered the case, which was tried before a Superior Court judge.
Mena now faces sentencing on Dec. 18, with a potential term of up to 20 years in prison, according to the Essex County Prosecutor's Office. News12 New Jersey, however, reported that the court had not announced a sentencing date as of its Wednesday report. Hoodline could not independently reconcile that discrepancy in advance of publication.
