Doll or Child? Egg Harbor Township Police Solve Marshland Mystery

According to Egg Harbor Township police, what was thought to be a child’s body discovered in a New Jersey marshland on Wednesday was a toy with human features.

Egg Harbor Township Police Capt. Cherie Burgan told NJ Advance Media that a fisherman discovered the doll at 7 a.m. Wednesday. The doll was found in a swampy region near Ocean Drive, which connects cars to Ocean City. The road also goes to Longport, which has access to Margate and Ventnor. “It was a very lifelike doll,” Burgan explained. “It was child-size and made of silicone. It could easily have been confused for a real human.”

Police are investigating how the figure ended up in the muddy wetland. Burgan said it was unknown whether the doll was placed there purposefully or by mistake, and whether the person who abandoned it did so on foot or by boat. “If we can figure out who it is, then for causing alarm and the response that it did, we seek to charge that individual,” Burgan stated.

The marsh where the doll was discovered lies on the edge of a roadway that leads into the Atlantic Ocean. Malibu Beach, located off Ocean Drive, is a dog-friendly beach across from the marshes.

Burgan reported that police worked until about 11 a.m. to secure the scene as an active homicide. When investigators arrived at the location where the alleged body lay, they discovered it was a toy, she added.

“It was set up to look like a homicide,” Burgan added.

The Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office and the New Jersey State Police aided local officers. Neither agency responded promptly to a request for comment.

“We are thankful it wasn’t a real child,” Burgan remarked.