Sayreville Man Accused Of Killing His Own Son Dies In Hospital

SAYREVILLE, NJ — The Sayreville man accused of killing his own 9-year-old son last month died in the hospital Wednesday, from injuries police say he inflicted upon himself after setting his car on fire with the body of the boy inside.

Manuel Rivera, 43, of Sayreville, had been in the hospital in critical condition since the incident, which happened March 28.

"His injuries were from the incident, when he burned the vehicle and cut his throat. He has been in the hospital since the incident in critical condition," said a spokeswoman for Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone.

Rivera succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced deceased Wednesday at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick.

Rivera is charged with first-degree murder for the death of his son, 9. Rivera is accused of killing the boy (police still have not specified how), dousing his car in gasoline and setting it on fire and then slashing his own throat. All of this took place behind Sayreville War Memorial High School on March 28, a Thursday evening.

It was Rivera's stepdaughter, 26, who first called 911 from their home on Eisenhower Drive, according to court documents. She reported to Sayreville Police that her stepfather left the home with her 9-year-old brother and that the two were missing. The boy is Rivera's biological son.

She told police Rivera was threatening to kill himself and his son, according to authorities.

At the same time Sayreville police were called to a car fire on Washington Road, behind the high school.

When police got there, a Nissan was fully engulfed in flames, with Rivera standing outside it. He was doused in gasoline and had burns on his body, plus a cut through his neck, but was still alive.

The boy was a student at Woodrow Wilson Elementary School in Sayreville, NJ. com reported. He was also a member of the Sayreville Junior Bombers youth football team. Rivera had just been hired by the school district in January as a part-time cafeteria worker and school bus driver, the outlet also reported.

Surveillance video from the school showed Rivera pull into a parking spot. A short time later, the car started burning. The video showed Rivera get out of the car and stand next to the burning vehicle until police and fire crews pull up on scene.

Rivera's wife told police there were marital issues and that he sent her a video on his phone that night. In the video, he told her he wished to be cremated and apologized for his actions. He told her "he will see her in the afterlife," according to the criminal complaint.

A handwritten letter was then found in the garage of their home where he apologized to his family for his actions, authorities said. Police called the letter a suicide note. He wrote:

"This is how it ends for me and (the boy's name). I know we couldn’t live without each other. Today is the day that death does us part.”

The boy was found in a back seat of the car. He was pronounced dead at the scene, but his cause of death is pending an autopsy. Police said they found "a lot" of gasoline throughout the car and Rivera's clothing was "drenched" in gasoline.

Rivera was charged with first-degree murder, second-degree aggravated arson, second-degree child endangerment and second-degree desecration of human remains.

Since the incident, Rivera has been in critical condition at Robert Wood Johnson.

Prior: NJ Dad Left Suicide Note Before Killing Son, Slashing Throat: Police (April 1)