South Plainfield drug suspect charged in Brick Township man’s Fentanyl death

A suspected drug dealer from South Plainfield is charged with providing a Brick Township man with the fentanyl-laced drugs that killed him in late 2014.

Jesse Hay, 25, is charged with strict liability for the drug-induced death of Anthony Busby, 24, according to information from the office of Ocean County Prosecutor Joseph D.Coronato.

Hay is also charged with reckless manslaughter, distribution of fentanyl, possession of fentanyl and possession with intent to distribute. In Ocean County Superior Court in Toms River, Hay's bail was set at $250,000, with no option for release on payment of 10 percent.

Busby was found unconscious in a Marilyn Drive dwelling by Brick Township police who were summoned there at 6:47 PM on December 19, 2014. He was pronounced dead within a half-hour via telemetry by a doctor from Newark Beth Israel Hospital.

Investigators found white wax folds bearing the green-tinged stamp "730 Virus," and other packets marked "Strike Dead" and emblazoned with red-and-black images of the grim reaper.

A post mortem exam on December 20 confirmed that Busby's death was drug-induced and triggered by excessive fentanyl, and noted that the packets collected at the scene contained the chemical.

Hay has been incarcerated since his arrest on December 23, 2014, and was served a warrant in the Middlesex County Jail.

Of the 19 drug-induced death probes since he was appointed Prosecutor, Coronato says that six defendants and two codefendants have pleaded guilty to strict liability charges.