OC Jail inmate died alone, warden says

The Ocean County Jail inmate who died during the weekend was the only one in the cell at the time, according to Warden Sandra Mueller. A probe into the circumstances is under way.

Martin Cole-Haag of Freehold was pronounced dead at Community Medical Center in Toms River at 7:35 PM on May 10, about an hour and 20 minutes after a corrections officer discovered him, Mueller said in a prepared release.

She did not speculate or confirm a cause of death, contrary to earlier remarks by outside sources to WOBM News.

The inmate's information has been removed from the Ocean County Corrections Department online database.

According to mugshots.com, Cole Haag was charged with theft April 30, two days after turning 24 years of age. His bail was set at $10,000. A posting on jail.com lists a theft arrest in Passaic County in mid-January of this year.

Warden Mueller's statement:

Martin Cole-Haag, 24, of Freehold NJ died on May 10, 2015, while confined at the Ocean County Jail, Toms River.

On May 10, 2015, at approximately 6:15 p.m., Mr. Cole-Haag was discovered unresponsive in his cell by an Ocean County Corrections Officer who was conducting a health and welfare check. Mr. Cole-Haag was the only occupant in the cell at the time. The Ocean County Jail Medical Unit responded and performed emergency life saving techniques and was relieved by medical personnel from Toms River Township Emergency Medical Services and para-medics from the MONOC Medical Unit. Lifesaving efforts were unsuccessful and Mr. Cole-Haag was pronounced dead at Community Medical Center in Toms River at 7:35 p.m.

An autopsy to determine the actual cause of death will be performed by the Ocean County Medical Examiner. The death is being investigated by the department's Investigations Bureau, the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office, and the Ocean County Sheriff's Department Criminal Investigations Unit. The family has been notified by the Freehold Police Department.