Bayville Teen Died Of Asphyxiation When 650-Pound Granite Slab Fell On Him

A Bayville teen who died of asphyxiation when a 650-pound granite slab fell on him sometime between Friday night and early Saturday morning was trespassing at a local business when the accident occurred, according to the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office.

The death of Jared Marchiano, 17, Wheaton Avenue, has been ruled accidental after a joint investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Offices Major Crimes Unit, the Ocean County Sheriff’s Department CSI and Berkeley Township police, said spokesperson Al Della Fave.

Marchiano’s body was found wedged between two pieces of granite at 6:40 a.m. by a passing motorist who saw him laying between two slabs on the grounds of Stone N’ Counters South, LLC, at 245 Hickory Lane in Bayville.

Berkeley police, local fire department volunteers and medics responded to remove the stone off the victim. Marchiano was pronounced dead at 7:07 a.m. by Dr. Onogul of Newark Beth Israel Hospital.

“All those who had contact with the victim in the hours before his death were identified and interviewed,“ Della Fave said.

Authorities determined that Marchiano had been trespassing on the grounds of Stone N’ Counters South. He came into contact with the granite slab, which accidentally dislodged and pinned him, he said.