Perth Amboy Man Drowns At Heritage Minerals Lake In Manchester

MANCHESTER, NJ — Divers pulled the body of an 18-year-old Perth Amboy man from a lake at the Heritage Minerals site on Monday evening, the latest person to drown at the former mining site.

Victor Arias-Peralta went to Crystal Lake with other people about 6 p.m. Monday, Manchester Lt. Chris Cerullo said.

He and a friend were trying to swim across the lake, which formed when water from an aquifer filled an old mining site on the property, when Arias-Peralta appeared to suffer from severe fatigue and went into distress about 20 yards from the shoreline. Friends tried to help him, but Arias-Peralta eventually submerged underwater and disappeared in the current, Cerullo said.

Authorities were called and volunteer firefighters with the Manchester, Ridgeway and Whiting fire companies were dispatched at 6:53 p.m., fire officials said.

Cerullo said divers with fire companies along with assistance from the New Jersey State Police Aviation unit searched for Arias-Peralta for about 45 minutes before he was found unresponsive. He was pulled from the water and pronounced dead, Cerullo said.

Manchester Township police and Manchester Township EMS also responded.

The preliminary investigation indicates the drowning to be accidental, Cerullo said.

It was the second drowning in 2024 at the 7,000-acre site, which is privately owned. Edwin Toro-Mejia, 33, of Howell, drowned at the lake on June 22 after suffering a cramp when he was 30 yards from shore.

There are multiple "No Trespassing" signs posted around the property, which is fenced in. It fronts on Route 37 and on Route 70. Manchester authorities, with help from the Ocean County Sheriff's Office and New Jersey State Police, frequently go into the site and arrest trespassers because of the dangers of the property. It was first operated by ASARCO (American Smelting and Refining Company) and later operated by Heritage Minerals until mining operations stopped in the early 1980s.

The lakes on the property, because they formed from old mining sites, are filled with mineral-laden water from underground aquifers that is so cold swimmers tire much faster, authorities have said in the past. The minerals in the water reduce buoyancy, so swimmers don't naturally float.

In addition, the shoreline of the lakes is very unstable because they formed from mining and not naturally. Some of the lakes drop off to 60-foot depths not far from the shoreline; Crystal Lake, the largest on the site, is estimated to be 300 feet deep.

Authorities have issued multiple warnings over the years, but repeated warnings and posted signs have not deterred people from going to the site to swim on hot summer days.

Cerullo said the the Ocean County Sheriff’s Department Crime Scene Investigation Unit and the Ocean County Medical Examiner’s Office are assisting with the investigation. Anyone who may have been at Crystal Lake and witnessed this incident is asked to contact Detective Victoria Guarino of the Manchester Township Police Department’s Investigations Bureau at 732-657-2009, ext. 4201.

"The Manchester Township Police Department would like to remind the public that the Heritage Minerals or 'ASARCO' site is private property. It is closed for recreational and/or other use and it is a criminal offense to enter or remain on the property," Cerullo said.

"In the interest of public safety, the Manchester Township Police urges everyone to obey the 'No Trespassing' signs posted at the site. Trespassers are subject to substantial fines and penalties up to and including incarceration for being on the property."