HOWELL, N.J. (AP) - The death of a man whose body was found on a central New Jersey roadway last week has been ruled a homicide.
Authorities initially thought 33-year-old Domingo Merino Rafael might have been struck and killed by a vehicle. The Lakewood man was lying face down on Hurley Pond Road in Howell when he was found around 3:45 a.m. Friday by police responding to reports of an unconscious man.
Rafael was taken to a hospital but was pronounced dead there a short time later.
Monmouth County prosecutors say the death was ruled a homicide after an autopsy was conducted. But they declined to provide further details about how Rafael was killed, citing the ongoing investigation.
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