TOMS RIVER, NJ – In a tragic act of violence, a New Jersey man was sentenced to 60 years in prison for the cold-blooded murders of a father and his friend. Tyshaun Drummond, 42, was convicted of killing Nicholas Hardy, 36, and Sergio Chavez-Perez, 32, in a grisly incident at an apartment complex in Toms River on December 19, 2021.

The sentencing, announced by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office, came after a jury found Drummond guilty of two counts of murder. Additionally, he was charged with weapon-related offenses and burglary, capping a nearly monthlong trial that unveiled details of a tangled affair and a violent confrontation.

On the night of the murders, Lakewood Township police responded to calls of gunfire. They were given a description of the suspect, which led them to Drummond outside the apartment complex. When he failed to comply with officers’ orders, he was subdued with a stun gun, a moment captured by police body cameras and later shown in court.

Drummond’s chilling confession, “I shot everybody in the face,” was confirmed during his arrest. Inside the family apartment, police discovered the bodies of Hardy and Chavez-Perez, both shot fatally in the head.

During the trial, it was revealed that Chavez-Perez’s wife, Araceli Perez, had been having an affair with Drummond. She recounted to prosecutors a disturbing evening leading up to her husband’s death, including a text she sent warning Drummond that Chavez-Perez had left their home armed with a knife.

Text messages between Araceli Perez and Drummond, presented in court, painted a picture of a deep, albeit illicit, relationship. In one exchange, she referred to Drummond as her “love and future husband,” reflecting the intensity of their involvement.

Araceli’s testimony also included a haunting recollection of her husband’s foreboding words the night before the shooting: “Tonight, somebody’s going to die.” This tense atmosphere was further inflamed by a warning from their 12-year-old daughter, who alerted her mother that Chavez-Perez had taken a knife.

The community has been left grappling with the loss, as demonstrated by a GoFundMe page set up to support Chavez-Perez’s family, noting his role as a father of three. While no amount of money can replace their loss, the page seeks to alleviate the financial burden faced by the family in the aftermath of their tragic loss.

As Drummond begins his lengthy sentence, the case stands as a stark reminder of how personal turmoil can tragically escalate into violence, leaving families and communities forever altered.