N.J. trooper Ricardo Jorge Santos follows his ex-girlfriend, Dr. Lauren Semanchik home from work before killing her and her new boyfriend, firefighter Tyler Webb, before later taking his own life. The murder-suicide comes after the man stalking, harassing his ex close to a year and the state failing to get protective orders in place.
A New Jersey State Police sergeant killed his ex veterinary girlfriend and her firefighter boyfriend before taking his own life in apparent murder-suicide.
Sergeant First Class Ricardo Jorge Santos is alleged to have stalked 33-year-old veterinarian Dr. Lauren Semanchik of Pittstown and her boyfriend, 29-year-old firefighter Tyler Webb, of Forked River, at her home in Franklin Township on Friday evening.
Dr Lauren Semanchik failed by the system suppose to protect her
Semanchik’s body was found on Saturday. She had been shot in the back as she tried to flee. Webb lay nearby, also fatally wounded according to Hunterdon County Prosecutor Renée Robeson who described the shootings as ‘targeted’ attacks according to NorthJersey.com.
Santos’ body was discovered hours later inside a white Mercedes SUV some 50 miles away in Piscataway, dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
A semiautomatic handgun was recovered from his vehicle.
Semanchik had tried for months to escape Santos’ obsessive control – and that multiple institutions, including law enforcement, failed to act according to family.
Dr. Semanchik, 33, and Santos had only dated for three months in 2024 before she ended the relationship in September.
But the break up didn’t sit well with Santos, with family and police records attesting to a nearly year long campaign of stalking, sabotage, and harassment.
‘He showed up at her work. That’s where the car was keyed. He put recording devices in her home, water in her gas tank. He harassed her left and right,’ her sister told CBS News.
Ex boyfriend campaign of harassment, stalking of ex girlfriend comes to a bitter end
Lauren Semanchik had tried to block his calls but her ex used restricted numbers. She then tried to get restraining orders according to her mother, Jeannine Semanchik.
‘A lot of agencies failed her. She tried to get restraining orders. Nobody called her back.’
One of Santos’ own colleagues was reportedly contacted by Semanchik for help. Yet the abuse continued.
On the day of the murder-suicide, security footage that Semanchik had installed in her car, video shows her leaving Long Valley Animal Hospital, where she worked, around 5:25pm according to NJ.com.
A white 2008 Mercedes SUV, later confirmed to be Santos’, pulls out right behind her, tailing her for 30 miles to her home.
At 6:11pm, a figure can be seen coming through the woods along her driveway.
At 6:45pm, Tyler Webb arrived at the home. Minutes later, neighbors heard screaming and gunshots, but when Franklin Township police responded to those 911 calls, they couldn’t locate the source and left.
Beloved NJ vet remembered
The next day, Lauren’s father made the gruesome discovery.
His daughter and her boyfriend lay dead inside the home. Both had been shot.
Santos was found later that day, alone in his SUV in Johnson Park, dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. A semiautomatic handgun was recovered in the vehicle.
Lauren Semanchik was a beloved veterinarian at Long Valley Animal Hospital.
In a GoFundMe page her colleagues described her as a kind-hearted, fiercely intelligent professional who poured herself into her work and treated animals and their grieving owners with grace and compassion.
Read a statement from the Long Valley Animal Hospital released on Sunday: ‘Not only was Lauren a phenomenal veterinarian, she was one of the kindest souls you could ever encounter and a friend to us all.
‘While we have much more we can say regarding our thoughts, feelings and heartfelt stories of Dr. Semanchik, we will take a moment with our staff to navigate through this unprecedented process and remain closed this week, reopening on MONDAY 8.11.25.’
Domestic violence and murder-suicides in the U.S
Tyler Webb, 29, was a member of the Pinewald Pioneer Volunteer Fire Company. His fellow firefighters called his death a heartbreaking loss for their community.
‘Tyler served our department with dedication and honor… His contributions to our company and community will never be forgotten,’ the fire company said in a statement.
Robeson confirmed the case was being investigated as an act of domestic violence and a targeted double homicide.
‘This senseless and devastating loss has deeply affected our entire community,’ the prosecutor said. ‘While justice in the legal sense may not proceed, our commitment to supporting survivors and preventing future tragedies remains unwavering.’
Governor Murphy’s office, where Santos once served in an elite security role, also issued a statement.
‘We are shocked and devastated by this horrific tragedy.’
Around 10 murder-suicides occur each week in the United States, resulting in approximately 1,200 deaths annually. Intimate partner violence is involved in nearly two-thirds of all murder-suicides. More than half (57%) of homicide victims in murder-suicides were current or former intimate partners of the perpetrator.
A history of domestic violence, suicidal threats or attempts, and access to firearms are among the key warning signs of potential murder-suicide incidents.
