A man who previously patrolled the halls and cells of the Hudson County Jail in South Kearny will serve 50 years in prison after being sentenced on July 22 for the murder of his girlfriend and her friend, according to Essex Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II.
On February 16, 2021, John Menendez, 27, of West New York, picked up his girlfriend, Anna Shpilberg, 40, of Randolph, and her friend, Luiza Shinkarevskaya, 40, of Newark, at Newark Airport after they returned from a trip to Mexico.
Menendez took the victims to an off-airport parking space and shot his girlfriend in the head. Menendez then shot Shinkarevskaya four times. They died from their injuries.
Menendez turned himself in to police and admitted to shooting both women, stating that he was taking huge amounts of anabolic steroids, which prevented him from planning or intending to kill. However, multiple text messages between Menendez and his girlfriend in the days leading up to the deaths showed that he was unhappy and resentful of their trip to Mexico without him.
“This was a senseless act of domestic violence that resulted in the tragic death of two women. We hope this sentence provides closure to Anna and Luiza’s families and sends a clear message that illegal steroid use is not an excuse for violence,” Assistant Prosecutor Austin Edwards said.
Menendez pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree aggravated manslaughter on March 4.
On Tuesday, July 22, he was sentenced to 25 years each in New Jersey State Prison, to be served concurrently.
According to the state’s No Early Release Act, Menendez must serve 85% of his sentence before being eligible for parole.
Judge Ronald D. Wigler oversaw both the trial and the sentencing.
