By: Richard L. Smith
An Atlantic City man has been sentenced to 70 years in state prison for the fatal 2021 shooting of a neighbor at the Cassino Hotel in the city’s Ducktown neighborhood.
The Hon. Jorge Coombs, J.S.C., sentenced Umar Abdullah, 50, to an aggregate of 70 years in New Jersey State Prison following his June conviction on murder and multiple weapons charges.
A jury found Abdullah guilty of first-degree murder, second-degree unlawful possession of a handgun, and second-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose.
Immediately after the jury trial, Judge Coombs also found him guilty in a separate proceeding of first-degree unlawful possession of a weapon by a prior offender and second-degree certain persons not to have weapons.
The charges stem from an incident on October 10, 2021, when Atlantic City police and investigators from the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office responded to the Cassino Hotel shortly after 4 a.m. for reports of a shooting.
Officers found Mark Wright, 35, of Atlantic City, suffering from three gunshot wounds.
Despite life-saving efforts by first responders, Wright was pronounced dead at the scene.
According to the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office, surveillance footage captured Abdullah leaving his second-floor apartment at the Cassino Hotel with a handgun and firing four rounds at Wright before fleeing.
Both men lived in adjacent rooms at the Georgia Avenue hotel.
A warrant was issued for Abdullah’s arrest, and following a five-week manhunt, he was located at a residence in Egg Harbor City and taken into custody.
The case was investigated by the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit with assistance from the Atlantic City Police Department.