The US Marshals Service reported that Anthony “Tony” Mota, a fugitive on New Jersey’s Most Wanted list for over 25 years, was identified as a man sought for state charges including murder, kidnapping, racketeering, arson, possession of a weapon for unlawful purpose, and theft by extortion. The US Marshals investigation traced the criminal and identified the corpse of a man who had died in 2021 in the Dominican Republic.
Investigators had for years believed Mota had fled the United States to his native country, the Dominican Republic but were unable to locate him. New Jersey State Police Detectives and Deputy US Marshals suspected he was residing in Nizao, Peravia, in southcentral Dominican Republic.
Mota was suspect to be living under the alias Miguel Angel Gonzalez Perez, and that he had started a new family in the Dominican Republic. It was further learned in June 2021, Miguel Angel Gonzalez Perez, had died of an apparent heart attack in the Dominican Republic.
During the 25-year investigation after major crimes were committed in New Jersey and New York, investigators collected DNA evidence from various sources to assist in identifying Mota.
In April of 2022, a New Jersey State Police Detective, Deputy US Marshal, and New Jersey State Police Forensic Anthropologist traveled from New Jersey to Nizao, Dominican Republic to participate in the exhumation of Miguel Angel Gonzalez Perez and collect DNA samples that were then hand-carried back to the New Jersey State Police Forensic Anthropology Lab in Hamilton, New Jersey.
On 3 June 2022, the New Jersey State Police Office of Forensic Sciences received the result comparisons for the DNA. These results confirmed what New Jersey State Police Detectives had believed, Miguel Angel Gonzalez Perez was, in fact, New Jersey’s Most Wanted Fugitive, Anthony Mota, thus signifying the closure of this quarter-century old case.
“Once it was determined that Mota fled from New Jersey, it was imperative that the US Marshals deploy every asset available in order to help assist the New Jersey State Police Fugitive Unit to bring the suspect of this heinous crime to justice,” said Juan Mattos Jr., United States Marshal for the District of New Jersey. “This is another prime example of how collaborative efforts among the US Marshals Service, state law enforcement agencies, and our foreign field offices can work cohesively to end a fugitive’s journey.”
“This investigation is a testament to our relentless pursuit to not only locate one of New Jersey’s most wanted fugitives, but our dedication to bring closure to the family of the victim that has suffered all these years,” said Colonel Patrick J. Callahan, Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police.
Mota is described as an alleged gangster and was considered one of New Jersey State Police’s 12 Most Wanted fugitives. Mota was wanted on charges of murder, racketeering, kidnapping, extortion, arson, and unlawful use of a firearm. Mota was working for Colombian drug dealers in New York City collecting drug-related debts owed the Colombian gangsters when he kidnapped and killed Eddie Acevedo.
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US Marshals
Daily Voice
Noticias SIN
13 July 2022