Hudson County Corrections Officer From WNY Charged in Newark Double Homicide

Hudson County Corrections Officer Charged in Newark Double Homicide

Newark – Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens, II, and Newark Public Safety Director Anthony F. Ambrose announced today that the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office Homicide/Major Crimes Task Force, which includes detectives from the Newark Police Department, is investigating a double homicide.

Yesterday, Tuesday, Feb. 16, shortly after 9 pm a woman suffering from an apparent gunshot wound was found at Edison Place and Bruen Street in Newark. A second woman, also suffering from an apparent gunshot wound, was found on the 100 block of Haynes Avenue also in Newark.

The victims have been identified as Anna Shpilberg, 40, of Randolph and Luiza Shinkarevskaya, 40, of Riverdale. Both were pronounced dead on the scene.

John Menendez, a 24-year-old Hudson County Corrections Officer from West New York, has been charged with two counts of murder and weapons offenses.

The preliminary investigation indicates these are two related homicides at two different scenes.

Shinkarevskaya was discovered on the sidewalk at the Haynes Avenue location. She was pronounced dead at 9:53 pm. Shpilberg, who is believed to have had a romantic relationship with the suspect, was in the passenger seat of her vehicle. She was pronounced dead at 9:55 pm.

The investigation is active and ongoing.

The charges against Menendez are accusations. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until they enter a guilty plea or are found guilty beyond a reasonable double in a court of law.