Man Dies From 30-Foot Fall At Rutgers-Newark; Woman Killed At His Home

HOPEWELL, NJ — The owner of a home where a New Jersey woman was killed last month has died as a result of a a 30-foot fall, officials said.

Anthony L. Olswfski Jr., 49, died May 9 at University Hospital in Newark, according to his obituary. Newark Police say Olswfski was an employee of Lighton Industries who fell into an underground electrical vault on May 2 and then was rescued.

Olswfski owned the home on Washington Crossing-Pennington Road in Hopewell where police found Laura Perez's body on April 25. Brian Sheppard, 53, of Hopewell has been charged in connection with the April 25 murder of Laura Perez, 37, of Trenton, Mercer County Prosecutor Angelo J. Onofri and Hopewell Township Police Chief Lance Maloney recently announced.

Police and the MCPO said they do not believe there is a connection between the two incidents at press time.

Read more: Hopewell Township Man Killed Woman In His Home: Police

Just after 8:30 p.m. on April 25, police responded to the home after receiving a call from Olswfski. He had called to report that his car had been stolen, authorities said. He told police he had returned home from work that day and found it missing. He said Sheppard, who was his roommate, wasn’t home, and he couldn’t get in touch with him.

Shortly after 8 a.m. on May 9, firefighters received a call from EMS requesting assistance with a rescue on the Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences Newark Campus located on Bergen Street. Olswfski had fallen approximately 30 feet into an underground electrical vault and needed to be rescued

EMS rescue personnel were already in the vault providing the victim with medical treatment when firefighters arrived.

Approximately 30 Newark firefighters participated in the high-angle rescue, which required the use of a belay system and stokes rescue basket to safely remove the victim from the vault, police said.

After his rescue, EMS transported the man to the emergency room with serious injuries. Rutgers Police and officials from OSHA were also present on the scene. Lighton Industries was at the campus working in the vault when the accident occurred, police said.

Newark police photo