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April 1, 2024Smash-And-Grab Burglaries: Ocean County Man Faces Charges
April 1, 2024
NJ Dad's Suicide Note Unveils Tragic Fate of Son
According to the Middlesex County Prosecutors Office, new details were released Monday in the case of a Sayreville man accused of killing his son.
Manuel Rivera, 43, is charged with first-degree murder for the death of his 9-year-old son. He left a suicide note to his wife, saying he "wished to be cremated" and "This is how it ends for me and (the boy's name). I know we couldn’t live without each other. Today is the day that death does us part.”
On Thursday night, at the back of Sayreville War Memorial High School, Rivera is accused of slitting his own neck, killing the youngster (police did not say how), and dousing his car with gasoline.
According to records, Rivera's stepdaughter made the initial 911 call from their residence on Thursday at 10:52 p.m. Her age was not disclosed. She informed Sayreville Police that her brother, age nine, and her stepfather had gone missing from the house.
She told police Rivera was threatening to kill himself and the child, according to authorities.
Sayreville Police were alerted to a car fire on Washington Road, which is behind the high school, around the same time.
Rivera was standing outside a Nissan that was completely engulfed in flames when the police arrived. He was still alive despite being covered in gasoline, suffering burns throughout his body, and having a gash in his neck.
According to authorities, Rivera was seen pulling into a parking space and parking on school property which was shown on school surveillance footage. After a little while, the automobile begins to burn.
In the footage, Rivera was seen getting out of the automobile and waiting for the fire and police departments to arrive at the scene by the flaming car.
Authorities added that Rivera's wife reported to them that he had sent her a video on his phone that evening and that there were marital problems. He expressed regret for his crimes and that he wanted to be cremated to her in the video.
According to the criminal complaint, he informed her that "he will see her in the afterlife."
A handwritten letter was then found in the garage of their home where he apologized to his family for his actions, authorities said. Police called the letter a suicide note. He wrote:
"This is how it ends for me and (the boy's name). I know we couldn’t live without each other. Today is the day that death does us part.”
The youngster may have been Rivera's stepson, but the assistant prosecutor was unsure.
The youngster was discovered in the car's back seat. Assistant Prosecutor stated that while he was declared dead at the scene, the reason of his death is still unknown pending an autopsy. The Nissan contained "a lot" of gasoline, and Rivera's clothes were "drenched" in it, according to the police.
First-degree murder, second-degree aggravated arson, second-degree endangerment of a child, and second-degree desecration of human remains are the charges against Rivera.
Rivera was transported to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick, where he remains in critical condition.
