BELLEVILLE – Not only did a father and son alledge to have shot a young relative but they are also charged with disposing of his body in a murky, wide open marsh area off the Route 7 into the meadowlands, according police officials.
Two cousins, Peter Toscano, 20, AWOL from the military, and the late Jordan Voorhees, 22, were involved in an argument on Sunday Oct. 19, according to Belleville police. Toscano allegedly shot and killed Voorhees and with the assistance of his father, Gerald Toscano, disposed of the body.
Voorhees had been living with pair for the past six months, according to the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office.
Voorhees remains are yet to be recovered, police said.
“They allegedly took the body and brought it down off the Belleville Pike in Kearny and rolled him out into the meadows and dumped him onto one of the islands out there,” Kearny Deputy Chief Robert Osborn said. “Monday (Oct. 20) we were out there decontaminating the state police divers and their boat.”
The New Jersey State Police Troop B out of Totowa had their TEAMS north unit divers searching the area where the Toscanos allegedly hid the body, reports said.
The supposed final resting place of Voorhees is past the Poland Spring Water Co. at 720 Belleville Turnpike over the first viaduct before you reach the New Jersey Turnpike. On the right hand side there are tretcherous marshes behind the power substation.
The Kearny Fire Department Haz-Mat team was also there on Wednesday, Oct. 22.
Osborn said that Peter Toscano told Belleville police what he had done and showed them the spot where he and his father allegedly took the body of his cousin.
“They (the police) found where he put the body, they found the guys clothes, the tarp but they just couldn’t find the body,” he said.
Belleville Capt. Mark Minichini could not get specific about certain aspects of the case.
“We found evidence linking the marsh that is helpful to us – to the homicide. Since the investigation is ongoing, we’re still at work here so I’m limited to what I can tell you,” Minichini said. “We know there might have been arguments between the two cousins but that’s all we know at this time.”
He did say that the state police dive team was helpful and instrumental in assisting the Belleville police in the search.
“You have to understand it is a very difficult terrain. The conditions are extreme to say the least – it’s very tough to work in, especially with the cold water temperatures as they are,” Minichini said. “It’s not a pleasant environment to be searching and we’re doing our best but it’s very difficult and that’s why it’s taken this long.”
The Toscanos, who live at 56 Smallwood Avenue in Belleville, were charged with the alleged slaying of Voorhees, who formerly lived in Bloomfield. Peter Toscano is charged with murder, conspiracy to commit murder, unlawful disturbing/concealing of human remains, and two weapons offenses. He is currently being held at the Essex County Jail in lieu of $750,000 bail. Gerald Toscano, a PSE&G technician, has been charged with conspiring to commit murder and unlawful disturbing/concealing of human remains. He is currently out on bail of $75,000.
Detectives believe that the father and son placed the body inside a pickup truck along with a rowboat and drove to the nearby marshes of the Meadowlands in Kearny and dumped the body. Scores of detectives from the New Jersey State Police, Belleville Police Department, Kearny Police Department, Bergen County Sheriffs Office and the Essex County Prosecutor's Homicide Squad have been searching the location since Sunday.
Detectives are currently reassessing when to resume their search. A weapon was recovered at the Toscano home.
The Essex County Prosecutor's Crime Scene Unit seized the truck and rowboat and other evidence. The investigation remains ongoing.
The father and son will be arraigned in court on Wednesday, Oct. 29, before Essex County Superior Court Judge Peter Vazquez.