A 23-year-old man was indicted today by a Monmouth County grand jury on the charges of murder and endangering the welfare of a child in connection with the 2019 death of his six-week-old baby girl, Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni announced.
Austin Meli, a Wall Township resident, could face life in prison, if convicted.
The case background …
On March 9, 2019, Wall Township police responded to a call of an an unresponsive infant. The investigation determined that the child had been in the immediate care of her father, Austin Meli, at the time she was found to be unresponsive.
The infant was transported to Ocean Medical Center in Brick where she was pronounced dead. Subsequent investigation revealed additional details surrounding the infant’s death, and determined the manner of the baby’s death to be a homicide.
Meli was arrested on the murder and related charges. If convicted of murder, he faces a minimum sentence of 30 years in a New Jersey state prison without parole and a maximum sentence of life imprisonment without parole. He also faces up to 10 years in prison on the endangering the welfare of a child charge.
If anyone has any information that can assist the investigative team, they are urged to call Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office Detective Shawn Murphy at 732-431-7160 ext. 7032 or Wall Township Police Detective Chris Lisewski at 732-449-4800 ext. 1140.
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