Man Lied About Talia Salzano's Death, Tried to Cover Up Drugs, Police Say

South Brunswick, NJ - Township police announced Monday they made an arrest in connection with the death of Talia Salzano, a 19-year-old South Brunswick teen who died of a heroin overdose in August of this year.

Daniel Guzman, 24, of South Brunswick was charged Monday with obstructing justice and tampering with evidence, two fourth-degree crimes, township police said.

Salzano was found dead in the bedroom of Daniel Guzman’s home on Saturday, August 15, 2015. At the time, Guzman lived on Pear Street in the Oakdale Mobile Home park right off Rt. 1.

It was Guzman who called South Brunswick police at 1:26 p.m. that day, police said, saying that Salzano was unconscious and wouldn’t wake up.

He tried to wake Salzano, police said, but was unable to. In a panic, he altered the scene to clean up evidence of drug use before calling 911, police charge. Guzman then provided false statements to police in the hours and days following Salzano’s death, police allege. In addition, he warned other people of the impending investigation in an attempt to thwart police, officials charge.

With no immediate cause of death apparent at the scene, Salzano’s body underwent an autopsy by the Middlesex County Medical Examiner. After multiple tests were completed, including toxicity tests, her death was ruled to be from an overdose of heroin by the Medical Examiner.

South Brunswick Police Chief Raymond Hayduck said Guzman’s alleged lies at the scene on August 15 prevented the police from possibly using life-saving Narcan, an emergency treatment used with great success nationwide in cases of heroin overdose.

“Our officers are equipped with medication to reverse the dangers of heroin,” Hayduck said. “We have used the medication more then a dozen times. In this case, not only did (Guzman) not get help for his friend, he altered the scene and provided false information.”

Guzman surrendered and posted $5,000 bail. He faces up to three years in jail if convicted of each charge.

At the time of her death, Salzano had just graduated from South Brunswick High in 2014, and many in the school were distraught when she died. According to her obituary, Salzano studied architecture, and her passions were art and music, especially classic rock, and poetry.