New Jersey Man Charged with Homicide Following Fatal Boating Incident

<p>A New Jersey man faces felony charges following a late-night crash in Barnegat Bay that resulted in the death of a 26-year-old passenger and left two others critically injured along the Jersey Shore in late July.</p><p>Troopers from the New Jersey State Police Marine Bureau arrested Kevin Wells, 40, of Warren, New Jersey, on Friday, charging him with vehicular homicide and two counts of assault by vessel while intoxicated.</p><p>State police reported that troopers responded just before 11 p.m. on July 25 to reports of a serious vessel collision along the Intracoastal Waterway in Toms River Township.</p><p>Investigators indicated that Wells was operating a 32-foot Boston Whaler when the boat struck a channel marker.</p><p>After the impact, Wells navigated the damaged vessel to a private residence on Silver Lagoon Drive in Toms River Township, where emergency personnel arrived to provide assistance.</p><p>A passenger aboard the boat, Michael T. Bereheiko, 26, of Green Brook, New Jersey, was transported to an area hospital, where he later died.</p><p>Two other passengers – 27-year-old Steven Pochick, of Green Brook, and 27-year-old Nicholas Cherasaro, of North Plainfield – sustained serious injuries and were taken to a local hospital. A fourth passenger, 24-year-old Sarah Stulh, of Bayville, suffered minor injuries.</p><p>According to his obituary, Bereheiko graduated from Watchung Hills Regional High School in 2017, where he played varsity football. He later attended Lincoln Tech, studied to become a heavy diesel mechanic, and worked for Schifano Construction Corporation in Middlesex.</p><p>Following his arrest on Friday, Wells was booked into the Ocean County Jail. Records indicate he is being held without bail pending a formal court detention hearing.</p><p>State police stated that the investigation into the crash remains ongoing.</p><p>This incident marks at least the third fatal boating collision involving alleged impairment in the area this summer.</p><p>State police charged another New Jersey boater in August for a separate fatal Memorial Day crash along the Jersey Shore. Jennifer L. Pearson, 59, of Barnegat, surrendered on Aug. 19 after authorities alleged she was intoxicated while operating a 23-foot center console vessel in Barnegat Bay near Brant Beach.</p><p>Pearson’s boat collided with a channel marker around 5:45 p.m., ejecting her 28-year-old son, Gunnar Pearson, and his girlfriend into the water. Gunnar Pearson was transported to a hospital, where he later died, while four others were treated for minor injuries.</p><p>Pearson faces charges of second-degree death by vessel, operating a vessel under the influence, reckless operation, operating without a safety certificate, and failure to keep a proper lookout.</p><p>Court records show investigators detected alcohol when speaking with Pearson, who admitted to drinking earlier that afternoon.</p><p>In a third fatal crash this summer, authorities charged 64-year-old Stephen Schneider after a July 19 boating collision resulted in the deaths of his two young grandchildren in the bay near Berkeley Township, according to NJ.com.</p><p>Schneider was charged with two counts of reckless vessel homicide after his boat struck a channel marker. Police alleged Schneider was intoxicated at the time of the crash, which killed 9-year-old Mya Bella Golabek and 7-year-old Sigmund Paul Golabek.</p>