Ocean County Man Sentenced to State Prison

Ocean County Man Receives State Prison Sentence for His Actions

Ocean County Man Sentenced to State Prison

According to the Ocean County Prosecutors Office, on May 8, 2026, Ruben Santiago, 37, of Lakewood, was sentenced to 25 years New Jersey State Prison relative to his previously entered guilty plea to Aggravated Manslaughter in connection with the death of his three-month-old daughter on May 5, 2025, in Lakewood Township.

The sentence will be subject to the terms of the No Early Release Act (NERA), meaning that Santiago will be required to serve at least 85 percent of his prison sentence before he may be considered for parole eligibility. Santiago pled guilty to the charge before Judge Ryan on January 15, 2026.

On May 5, 2025, at approximately 7:20 p.m., Officers from the Lakewood Township Police Department responded to a residence on Pinehurst Drive for a report of a three-month-old infant having difficulty breathing.

Responding Officers found the infant to be unresponsive. Lakewood Township Emergency Medical Services personnel subsequently arrived on scene and immediately began to administer medical attention to the infant.

The infant was transported to Ocean University Medical Center in Brick Township and later transferred to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Jersey Shore University Medical Center (JSUMC) in Neptune. On May 6, 2025, the infant was pronounced deceased at JSUMC.

On May 7, 2025, the Ocean County Medical Examiner’s Office performed a post-mortem examination of the infant. The examination determined that the cause of the infant’s death was blunt force trauma to the head causing fracturing and subdural hematoma, and the manner of death to be homicide.

A thorough investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit, Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Special Victims Unit, Lakewood Township Police Department, and Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit, revealed that Santiago and Gibson - the infant’s parents - were responsible for the child’s death.

On May 7, 2025, both Santiago and Gibson were taken into custody at Lakewood Township Police Headquarters. They were subsequently transported to the Ocean County Jail where Santiago has remained lodged since that date.

On January 16, 2026, Gibson was released from jail on pre-trial monitoring.

At the time of his guilty plea, Santiago exonerated Gibson from any wrongdoing in connection with the infant’s death. As such, the charges against Gibson have been dismissed in the interests of justice.