Point Pleasant Man Receives Sentence for Strangling Woman

Point Pleasant Man Receives Sentence for Strangling Woman

The Ocean County Prosecutor's Office announced on Friday that a Point Pleasant man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for nearly killing a lady by strangulation in a Point Pleasant house.

According to prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer, Superior Court Judge Dina M. Vicari sentenced 32-year-old Juan M. Santiago-Rojas on Friday for attempted murder. In accordance with the No Early Release Act, Santiago-Rojas, who entered a guilty plea to the charge on August 18, must serve at least 85% of his sentence before he is eligible for parole.

When Point Pleasant police arrived at a residence on Butler Avenue on August 22, 2022, they discovered an unconscious woman who had suffered severe head and neck injuries, according to the authorities.

Because of the type and severity of her injuries, she was transported to Ocean University Medical Center in Brick and then moved to Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune.

According to authorities, she received treatment before being released.

After determining that Santiago-Rojas had assaulted the woman, investigators charged him with aggravated assault on August 23, 2022, and issued an arrest warrant; however, Santiago-Rojas had already left the area.

After 16 months on the run, he was apprehended in Wilmington, North Carolina, on December 8, 2023. What prompted his detention in North Carolina has not been disclosed by authorities.

On January 12, 2024, he was extradited to New Jersey and has been detained at the Ocean County Jail ever since. According to jail records, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency has two detainers on Santiago-Rojas.

On January 22, 2024, Santiago-Rojas was also charged with attempted murder after an investigation following his detention found that he had beaten the woman and strangled her until she was unconscious.