Harry Wright Lake (Photo: Manchester Township)
Police say a 20-year-old Toms River man has died after witnesses say he fell off a raft in a local lake.
Luis Angel Meyo-Jimenez died of drowning Monday after the 6:32 p.m. incident at Harry Wright Lake in Manchester, police there said. Police received a 911 call from a witness who told dispatchers Meyo-Jimenez had fallen off a raft and disappeared from view.
According to witnesses, Meyo-Jimenez was sitting on a raft in the area of the lake’s floating dock when he fell into the water and never re-emerged. Manchester Police Ptl. Chris Walaszek arrived and entered the water where he located Meyo-Jimenez at the bottom of the lake. Walaszek was assisted in the water by Whiting volunteer firefighters William Sloan and Josh Lightbody, said Capt. Todd Malland.
Meyo-Jimenez was immediately brought to shore where CPR was initiated by Ptl. Vincent Derome and Ptl. Marc Micciulla. He was transported to Community Medical Center where he was later pronounced dead. The incident is being investigated by Detective Danny Barker of the department’s Investigations Bureau with the assistance of Detective Anthony Carrington Jr. of the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office and Detective Dan Lesniakowski from the Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigations (CSI) Unit.
Assisting at the scene were members of both the Whiting and Manchester Volunteer Fire Departments as well as EMTs from Quality Medical Transport and paramedics from MONOC.
Anyone who may have been at the Harry Wright Lake and witnessed the incident is being asked to contact the Manchester Township Police Department at 732-657-6111 or the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit at 732-929-2027.
