Prosecutor's Office Won't Release Any More Names In Hunting Death For Now

The Ocean County Prosecutor's Office will not be releasing any more names in the shooting death of a 26-year-old Barnegat man until the final report from the county Medical Examiner's office is complete, a spokesman said.

That includes the name of the shooter and the victim's father," said spokesman Al Della Fave.

"It's been traumatic enough for him," Della Fave said of the victim's father. "The shooter not being charged at this time also will not be named."

"Once we receive (reports) a final determination will be made," he said. "I can't put a timeline on how long that will take."

Richard Pereira, 26, was killed on Saturday morning in the Bayville woods after he was shot by a hunting companion, Della Fave has said.

Berkeley police received a 9-1-1 call at 8:46 a.m. Saturday morning informing police that Pereira, a 26-year-had been shot while hunting, spokesman Al Della Fave said.

Police and MONOC Unit 712 responded to a wooded area near Locker Street, where they found Pereira. He was pronounced dead by telemetry at 9:08 a.m. by Dr. Juarez from Newark Beth Israel Hospital, Della Fave said.

His body was taken to Community Medical Center in Toms River and the scene was immediately secured and processed by Detective Matthew Scutti and Detective Laudicina of the Ocean County Sheriff's Department, he said.

Ocean County Major Crimes Unit Detective John Carroll and John Murphy, along with Berkeley Township Police Detective Joseph Santoro, were assigned to lead the investigation.

The preliminary investigation found the victim, his father and two friends were out hunting deer. One of the victim's friends, a 41-year-old man from Forked River, discharged his shotgun while hunting and struck Pereira, killing him. The man's father tried to render first aid while 911 was called, Della Fave said.

The investigation is continuing, he said.