Teen Charged With 'Murder As Accomplice' In Fatal Jersey City Heights Shooting

JERSEY CITY, NJ — An 18-year-old man from Union City was charged with murder as an accomplice this week in the shooting death of a Jersey City man in January.

Sylis Lopez was charged by the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office Homicide Unit with the fatal shooting of Rafael Gomez, 25, on Sunday, Jan. 29, 2023.

Lopez was charged with murder as an accomplice and conspiracy to commit murder. He was also charged with unlawful possession of a weapon and possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose.

He was arrested at the Hudson County Correctional Facility on Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2023,
where he was being detained on an unrelated matter, prosecutors say.

They said that at approximately 9:35 p.m. on Jan .29, the Jersey City Police Department received a report of shots fired in the area of Summit Avenue and Poplar Street in Jersey City Heights.

Officers found Gomez with an apparent gunshot wound to the torso. He was transported by Emergency Medical Services to Jersey City Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead shortly after 11 p.m.

Prosecutor Esther Suarez credited the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office Homicide Unit, the Jersey City Police Department, and the Union City Police Department with the investigation and arrest.

The matter remains under investigation. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Office of the Hudson County Prosecutor at 201-915-1345 or to leave an anonymous tip at:
http://www.hudsoncountyprosecutorsofficenj.org/homicide-tip/. All information will be kept
confidential.