An Atlantic City man accused of attempted murder in the daylight stabbing of his neighbor on the Boardwalk was ordered held in jail Friday.
Ronald Aponte's argument that there was a potential for self-defense did not sway the judge, who noted there was no indication on surveillance video or from witnesses that the victim attacked him.
Victim Stanley Maragoudakis, 63, "frequently berated both building tenants and people on the Boardwalk, particularly women, the elderly and disabled," mutual neighbors told investigators.
The defense also submitted a police report from a neighbor who said Maragoudakis threatened to kill her.
But this did not give 64-year-old Aponte the right to stab him several times, including in the back, Superior Court Judge Pam D'Arcy said in ruling he be detained.
"It appears to be completely unprovoked," Assistant Prosecutor Gina Deannuntis says of the attack.
"The victim may or may not be a bad guy," the judge said. "However, this does not give the defendant the right to violently stab him multiple times."
Aponte was running on the Boardwalk in front of the Tropicana Atlantic City when the attack occurred just before 11 a.m. March 22.
He then ran back to his 10th-floor apartment at the Ritz, where he changed clothes before he was ultimately arrested, according to the charges.
The attack was captured on two surveillance cameras and witnessed by an off-duty Marlboro police officer, according to the affidavit of probable cause and information given in court.
The public safety report, which helps determine whether a person is held under bail reform, recommended Aponte not be released.
But his attorney, Marco Laracca, told the judge there's "a strong defense for self-defense. That's something a computer can't look at when we put it into the system."
The judge said there was no evidence of that the victim attacked Aponte, and noted that the stab wounds were to the torso and back, "indicating at some point the victim attempted to turn away and the defendant continued to stab him."
Aponte also has served "prior significant state prison time," the judge noted.
He has a prior conviction for receiving child pornography.
