For Immediate Release:
February 28, 2025

Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced an additional criminal charge filed against 26-year-old RANDY LANTIGUA of Lodi, NJ. This latest charge is the result of a months-long, continuing investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Chief Matthew Finck, and the Lodi Police Department, under the direction of Police Chief Donald Scorzetti.

As previously reported, on Saturday, April 6, 2024, the Lodi Police Department responded to a 911 call reporting an adult male who was unresponsive in the bedroom of a private residence. The victim, identified as 62-year-old James White of Lodi, NJ, was located by first responders and pronounced deceased at the scene. Indicators of a possible drug overdose were noted, and detectives from the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Narcotic Task Force were notified. A joint investigation by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office and the Lodi Police Department into the death of James White and the related drug activity revealed that RANDY LANTIGUA distributed narcotics to the victim. As a result of that investigation, on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, LANTIGUA was arrested in Lodi, NJ and charged with five counts of various drug offenses.

The inquiry into the fatal dose of narcotics continued. Following months of additional investigation, detectives from the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Narcotic Task Force and Lodi Police Department determined that the controlled dangerous substance ingested by the victim contained Fentanyl and Xylazine, and RANDY LANTIGUA distributed the fatal dose to the victim causing his death.

On Thursday, February 26, 2025, detectives from the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Narcotic Task Force arrested RANDY LANTIGUA in Lodi, NJ, and charged him with first-degree strict liability for drug-induced death, N.J.S.A. 2C:35-9. LANTIGUA was remanded to the Bergen County Jail pending a first appearance in Bergen County Superior Court in Hackensack, NJ.

Prosecutor Musella states that all the charges in this matter are merely accusations, and that the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Prosecutor Musella thanks the Lodi Police Department for its assistance in this investigation, as well as the Garfield Police Department, which participates in the Bergen County Narcotic Task Force.