The Perth Amboy man accused of fatally stabbing a city man in 2014 pleaded guilty to a charge of murder on Wednesday.
Middlesex County Courthouse, in New Brunswick NEW BRUNSWICK -- The Perth Amboy man charged in 2014 with fatally stabbing a fellow city man and then dumping his body in the woods pleaded guilty to a charge of murder on Wednesday, the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office announced in a statement.
Wilbert Hernandez, 36, will be sentenced to 30 years in state prison without the eligibility of parole, officials said in the statement, with an additional 18 months to run concurrently for a fourth-degree weapons charge.
Hernandez had been charged in the October 2014 slaying of 35-year-old Ramon Lugo, who officials had said was fatally stabbed and then left in a wooded area near Washington Avenue in Perth Amboy, according to previous reports.
Officials at the time said the investigation also showed Lugo had been robbed, previous reports said. His body was found after a passerby saw it in the wooded area and called the police.
The investigation, according to officials in the statement, determined that "the murder was not a random act of violence and that the two men knew each other."
At a hearing held at the Middlesex County Courthouse on Wednesday, Hernandez pleaded guilty before Superior Court Judge Dennis Nieves. His sentencing was tentatively scheduled for Feb. 3, 2017, the statement said.
Hernandez's sentence was the result of a plea deal reached between Hernandez and Middlesex County assistant prosecutors Lisa Miralles Walsh and Miriam Acevedo.
Spencer Kent may be reached at skent@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @SpencerMKent. Find the Find NJ.com on Facebook.