Woman Stabbed In Brick Was Ending Relationship, Mom Says: Affidavit

BRICK, NJ — A woman found stabbed in the parking lot at the Cherry Quay bicycle trail had broken off a relationship with the man accused in the assault, according to the probable cause affidavit filed in the case.

Harry J. Bray Jr., 35, has been charged with attempted murder in the Jan. 5 stabbing. He is being held at the Ocean County Jail in Toms River. He also has been charged with unlawful possession of a weapon and possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, the Ocean County prosecutor's office said.

Bray was identified by the victim when she was found by Brick Patrolman Michael Miller on Jan. 5, according to the probable cause affidavit filed in the case.

Miller was doing a routine patrol check of the parking lot about 5:30 p.m. and found a car with two flat tires sitting in the lot. As he checked around the car he found the woman lying face down near the car, which was registered to her, according to the affidavit.

The lower part of her body was covered by a blanket and there were blood stains near her on the ground, the affidavit said. When Miller called out to the woman, she yelled "my boyfriend stabbed me," and named Bray as the assailant. Miller called EMS and rendered aid to the woman, who ultimately was taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center for treatment.

The woman suffered multiple stab wounds and initially was listed in critical condition, the prosecutor's office said. Read more: Man Charged With Attempted Murder In Cherry Quay Stabbing In Brick

Investigators searching the area found a silver engagement ring and a silver necklace with a heart pendant, both with blood on them. They had been thrown into a nearby trash can at the parking lot, the affidavit said.

While police were tracking down Bray at his home in Manchester, authorities also were speaking with the woman's mother.

The mother told detectives the woman and Bray had been dating for about a year and a half, but the woman had broken off a relationship with Bray and had told him to stop contacting her after some incidents the mother called "alarming," according to the affidavit.

That included an incident in the fall where Bray took off in the woman's car , with the woman's toddler in the car seat, after they had a fight, according to the affidavit.

Bray had been "very nice" to the woman and her daughter in the early stages of the relationship, but as time went on the woman discovered Bray was lying to her about many things, the mother told detectives, according to the affidavit. Patch is not identifying the mother or her hometown to protect the privacy of the victim.

Things escalated to a domestic violence incident in August 2022, and at that time Bray took the woman's Samsung phone, the affidavit said. That phone was found and seized after Bray was arrested when he went to Manchester police headquarters for questioning following the stabbing, authorities said.

When the woman ended the relationship Bray kept contacting her, her mother told detectives. The woman had blocked him on her phone and on Facebook messenger in an attempt to prevent him from contacting her.

Bray apparently persisted, however, dropping off gifts for the woman and her mother outside the mother's home before Christmas. The affidavit does not say whether the gifts were opened or what the packages contained.

When Miller found the woman and her car, the car seat was in the back seat, empty; she told Miller her toddler was at day care.

The woman's mother told detectives she had been called about 5 p.m. because the woman had not shown up to pick up the toddler, which was not like her. The mother said she tried to call the woman three times but did not get an answer, the affidavit said.

Authorities searched Bray's home in Manchester and found red stains consistent with blood on the outside door at the back of the house. In a trash can, they found a knife with red stains on the blade consistent with blood, along with a receipt from Home Depot showing the purchase of a knife of the same kind, the affidavit said.

When Bray came in for questioning, detectives saw cuts or defensive wounds on his hands, but as soon as they said a knife had been found Bray requested an attorney, the affidavit said.

Bray's father told authorities his son had borrowed his vehicle that afternoon, telling his father he needed it to go to a job interview. His father said Bray left at 2 and returned at 5:30 p.m.

The affidavit gives no indication of how or why the woman wound up in the Cherry Quay parking lot with Bray on Jan. 5, or any information on what happened immediately before the stabbing.

Bray's next court hearing is set for 9 a.m. on Jan. 18, according to Ocean County court records.

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