Law enforcement officials were investigating the deaths of a 35-year-old mother and her 19-year-old daughter whose bodies were found in a West 10th Street home on Jan. 27, according to a press release from the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office.
The deceased were identified as Melanie Polito, 35, and her daughter, Ashley Baez, 19.
The case is being investigated by the Prosecutor’s Office’s Homicide Unit, with assistance from the Bayonne Police Department.
A neighbor said that Polito’s boyfriend was shoveling snow outside the house, went back inside about 9 a.m., and found the bodies.
The two bodies were discovered in the first floor apartment, the prosecutor’s release said. Polito and Baez were found in the living room and pronounced dead at the scene.
No visible signs of trauma were discovered on either of the two bodies, according to the release.
Drug paraphernalia was found in the apartment.
“We knew them. They were very nice.” – Barbara Janiszewski
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The Bayonne Fire Department determined that carbon monoxide levels were within normal limits.
Polito resided at the location with Baez, Baez’s two-year-old son, and another 18-year-old daughter. The 18-year-old daughter was not home at the time.
No one has been arrested or taken into custody, the prosecutor’s release said. The cause and manner of deaths are pending the findings of the Hudson County Medical Examiner. The prosecutor’s office said it may take several weeks for the toxicology results.
After police arrived on the scene, the 18-year-old woman came home, was told how the two family members had been found, and came out of the house with the little boy, neighbors said.
The child was taken to Bayonne Medical Center for observation.
Neighbor Barbara Janiszewski, who lives a few doors away, said she was familiar with the family.
“We knew them. They were very nice,” Janiszewski said. “It was ‘hello,’ ‘good-bye,’ you know.”
Janiszewski said she had seen the woman’s boyfriend shoveling snow in the morning. Shortly thereafter, she saw a Bayonne Fire Department truck and other emergency vehicles arrive on the block.
The two-story, white-brick house is between Broadway and Avenue C. Most of the morning and afternoon on Jan. 27 police vehicles blocked entry to the street.
Joseph Passantino may be reached at JoePass@hudsonreporter.com.
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