BRICK – A township man has been indicted on charges alleging that he supplied the cocaine responsible for a 27-year-old woman’s fatal overdose, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer announced.
An Ocean County grand jury indicted Roderick Seward, 31, of Brick Township, on Aug. 26 on charges of strict liability drug-induced death, distribution of cocaine and possession of cocaine.
Brick Township police responded to a local home at about 9:10 a.m. Jan. 26 after receiving a report of an unresponsive woman. Officers found the woman deceased from what appeared to be a drug overdose, authorities said.
An investigation determined that Seward allegedly supplied cocaine to the woman, according to the prosecutor’s office. Toxicology testing later confirmed cocaine was present in her system, and the Ocean County Medical Examiner’s Office determined the drug caused her death.
Seward was charged June 17 and surrendered at Brick Township Police Headquarters that day. He was taken to the Ocean County Jail, where he has remained in custody.
The investigation involved the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit and Narcotics Strike Force, Brick Township Police Department, Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit and Ocean County Medical Examiner’s Office. Senior Assistant Prosecutor Stephen Burke presented the case to the grand jury.
The charges are accusations. Seward is presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
