Newark man wanted for murder in NJCU student’s beating death

Officials have issued a murder warrant for the arrest of a 25-year-old Newark man in connection with the July 9 death New Jersey City University (NJCU) student Robert Hayes.

Eric Santiago (Photo: Essex County Prosecutor’s Office(

Eric Santiago, 25, is a fugitive from justice with a bail of $500,000, announced acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn Murray Friday morning.

“We want to thank the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office for their swift work,” said Emmanuel Watson, a spokesman for Hayes’ family told NJ.com. “Hopefully, if there was anyone else involved they will be found and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

Hayes, a 20-year-old resident of Newark, was found lying beaten and naked near Verona Avenue in the early hours of July 9.

He was later transported to University Hospital in Newark for treatment, where doctors following an evaluation said he’d suffered traumatic brain injuries,” said his father, Robert Carpenter. Hayes was removed from life support days later, Carpenter added.

The circumstances of what led to Hayes’ death are still slim. But one law enforcement source, speaking on condition of anonymity to NJ.com, said the killing may have resulted from a late-night dispute between the two men.

No other details about Santiago’s role in the ongoing investigation into Hayes’ apparent beating death, or the circumstances of his killing, were immediately available.

Hayes was honored during an Islamic “Janazah” ceremony at the Islamic Center of America and buried at Evergreen Cemetery Park in Hillside, according to his father.

Anyone with information on Santiago’s whereabouts should contact the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office or the Newark TIPS Hotline, county officials said.