Articles labeled: toms river high school north

Yesterday we linked to the story of Brittany Cena, who was found dead in the basement of her New Jersey home. At the time, police did not release the cause of death. Today it’s being reported that Cena was strangled, and her 24-year-old cousin has been charged with the crime:

Garry S. Zigich Jr., 24, strangled his 15-year-old cousin, Brittany Cena, Tuesday morning, then hid her body in the basement of the Cenas’ house on Colonial Drive before checking himself into a hospital, claiming suicidal tendencies, authorities said.

Autopsy results showed that Brittany’s cause of death was “manual strangulation.” Zigich has been charged with one count of murder.

Zigich had been living at the home for about a month, Ocean County Prosecutor Marlene Lynch Ford said at a news conference Wednesday. The girl’s parents and their two other daughters, Carol and a 3-year-old sister, also lived at the house.

Brittany’s parents had presumed Brittany attended Toms River High School North on Tuesday. But when she did not come home, Brittany’s mother, Denise Cena, became worried, authorities said, and went to police headquarters on Oak Street about 4:30 p.m. to request a missing persons report. A police officer went to the home to take the information, Police Chief Michael G. Mastronardy said.

Brittany Cena, a 15-year-old from Toms River, New Jersey was found dead in the basement of her home Tuesday evening. She was a student at the Toms River High School North. The cause of death has not been released, but police are investigating it as a homicide.

Both the grandparents, who do not live at the home, and the girl’s parents, Ernie and Denise Cena, were in the house when Brittany was found, Mastronardy said.

Police are investigating whether the girl was in school yesterday, Mastronardy added. He could not say when or how she died.

Mastronardy declined to reveal any more details about the death, but said he planned to release more information today.