A jury convicted an Atlantic City man of murder, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, unlawful possession of a weapon, aggravated assault, and possession of a weapon by a convicted felon, for the April 24, 2008, slaying of a Washington Township man and he faces life in prison when he is sentenced next month, Atlantic County Prosecutor Ted Housel announced.
Jose Aleman, 72, was convicted of possession of a weapon by a convicted felon after returning a verdict on the first four counts. The defendant will be sentenced before Superior Court Judge James Isman on Oct. 29 at 1:30 p.m., according to Assistant Prosecutor Janet Gravitz. The defendant went to Central Avenue in Atlantic City and shot to death Pong H. Yu, 59, of Washington Township. At the time of the crime, Yu was meeting with Carlos Smith, then 78, to discuss a construction project, when Aleman walked up to them and shot Yu in the head and in the stomach. A bullet also grazed Smith’s arm. The conviction on the aggravated assault charge is for the crime against Smith, Gravitz said.
Atlantic City Police Captain Joseph Fair, who was on duty the day of the killing, turned monto Central Avenue at approximately 1:18 p.m. when he saw a group of people. He initially thought that there was a fight. He pulled up to the scene when a man approached him who turned out to be Aleman. Fair learned that a shooting had taken place, secured the subject, took possession of the firearm and determined through witnesses at the scene what had taken place. Aleman was arrested at the scene, Gravitz said.
The state showed at the trial, which began on Aug. 31, that Aleman went to his South Tennessee Avenue home, got a gun, loaded it, and went back to Central Avenue and shot Yu three times striking him twice.
“This was an execution–style murder,” Gravitz stated. “This defendant’s acts left a family without a husband and father and another man scarred. It is apparent that the jury listened and evaluated the evidence.”
