Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer announced that on July 8, 2021, Jorge Santiago-Garcia, 32, of Lakewood, was indicted by a Grand Jury sitting in Ocean County on charges of Murder in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:11-3a(1); Possession of a Weapon for an Unlawful Purpose in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:39-4d; and Unlawful Possession of a Weapon in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:39-5d, in connection with the death Rodrigo Jimenez-Paz in Lakewood on August 31, 2020.
On August 31, 2020, members of the Lakewood Township Police Department were called to a business on 2nd Ave in Lakewood in response to multiple 911 calls indicating an individual had been stabbed at that location. Responding Officers found Rodrigo Jimenez-Paz, age 29, of Lakewood, with a stab wound to his chest.
Medical units transported Mr. Jimenez-Paz to Jersey Shore University Medical Center; lifesaving efforts were unsuccessful, and he was subsequently pronounced dead. An investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit, Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office High Tech Crime Unit and Lakewood Police Department identified Jorge Santiago-Garcia as the individual who stabbed Mr. Jimenez-Paz. Santiago-Garcia was arrested and has been lodged in the Ocean County Jail since his arrest.