2 Lower Township Men Charged In Drug Death: Prosecutor

Two Lower Township men were charged Thursday for selling heroin that killed a woman in July, according to the Cape May County prosecutor. Francis Leszczynski, 79, and Paul Neville, 59, sold the heroin that a West Cape May woman ingested before her death, the prosecutor said.

Cape May City police responded July 30 to a 911 call about an unresponsive woman in the 700 block of Grand Avenue, the prosecutor said. Police discovered Susan Perkins, 59, lying on her floor next to her bed and were unable to resuscitate her, according to the prosecutor.

An autopsy determined that Perkins died from heroin and fentanyl in her system, the prosecutor said. Leszczynski and Neville were charged Thursday for liability for the drug-induced death, a first-degree crime, the prosecutor said. Neville was also charged with hindering apprehension, according to the prosecutor.

Both are being held in the Cape May County Correctional Facility, the prosecutor said. Cape May County Prosecutor Jeffrey H. Sutherland advises that people convicted of a first-degree crime should serve 10-20 years in state prison.

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