Prison Escapee Killed North Jersey Baby In 1995

By Karen Wall and Daniel Hubbard
Staff Writers

The subject of a South Jersey manhunt, and former Passaic County resident, was sentenced to 25 years in prison for slapping his girlfriend's baby to death in 1995, court records show.

Arthur William Buckel, of Clifton, was 18 and living in Jersey City when he was sentenced to 25 years on a first-degree aggravated manslaughter charge for slapping 10-month-old Caitlin Colon to death because she was crying, court officials and the state Department of Corrections confirmed.

Buckel was eligible for parole after 12.5 years, said Syed Hassan, a Department of Corrections spokesman, and released on parole on June 12, 2010.

Buckel was serving a three-year sentence for a burglary conviction from Union County, state Department of Corrections spokesman Matt Schuman said. While in prison he was additionally convicted on burglary, aggravated assault, drug possession, and receiving stolen property charges out of Passaic County, Schuman said.

Buckel was due to become eligible for parole on the more recent charges on May 21, according to the state Department of Corrections website, and could face an additional three to five years in prison for the escape, Schuman said.

Barnegat Township police issued an update about 1:30 p.m. saying efforts to locate Buckel are continuing.

A white 2015 Chevy Silverado from Hammonton that was reported stolen was found at the CVS Drugstore on West Bay Avenue in Barnegat about 10:15 a.m., police said in a post on the department's Facebook page.

The suspect driving the vehicle is believed to be Buckel, who was discovered to be missing from the minimum-security prison in Hammonton at 6 a.m. Tuesday, authorities said.

As a precautionary measure all Barnegat schools were put on lockdown shortly thereafter, Barnegat police said.

The Long Beach Island Consolidated School District and Waretown schools also are on shelter-in-place lockdowns, according to alerts from the Surf City and Ocean Township (Waretown) police departments.

The Barnegat recreation department also has canceled all of its afternoon programs while the search continued, the township said via Nixle alert at 2:10 p.m.

Barnegat and Waretown residents were warned to lock their doors and keep them locked until further notice.

Barnegat police said agencies from the Ocean County Sheriff's Department, New Jersey Department of Corrections Fugitive Task Force, Ocean County Special Operations Group, Ocean County SWAT Team, New Jersey State Police, Ocean Township Police Department, and Stafford Township Police Department are assisting with are assisting with area searches, patrols, and K-9 Tracks along the Garden State Parkway and other areas of town.

Buckel is 38 years old and is about 5-foot-9 and 180 pounds with a small tattoo under his left eye. He had a mustache and a beard, police from Winslow Township, near Hammonton, said.

If you see someone fitting this description, police urge you to call 9-1-1.