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He had committed suicide in a Bergen County park. His body was found just before 10 a.m. by officers who had been looking for the father of four (three still living) since Friday, said Hillsdale Police Chief Chip Stalter.
I knew Brian. He was one of the sharpest, most effective and most helpful law enforcement officers I ever worked with during my nearly three decades in newspapers.
He grew up in Hillsdale, became a college wrestling champ, and graduated first in his class at the police academy before joining the local force in 1979.
Brian became a federal agent four years later — and was in a federal building across the street from the Pentagon when terrorists struck on Sept. 11, 2001. He was with the DEA for 25 years. Brian later took charge of the Edison Police Department at a time when it was in total upheavel: He was the only person the mayor there could trust.
Using mostly forfeiture money, he made several key improvements in just his first year.
Several agencies mobilized instantly when Brian was reported missing last night: Bergen County Prosecutor John L. Molinelli’s Office; the Bergen County Rapid Deployment Force, run by Police Chief Michael Saudino; Bergen County Sheriff Leo McGuire’s Department, the Bergen County Police Department, under the direction of Captain Uwe Malakas; State Police and the DEA.
Soon after they began an extensive search this morning, they found Brian’s body was in a secluded, undeveloped section of Wood Dale County Park in Woodcliff Lake.
“Preliminary investigation suggests that the manner of death was suicide,” Stalter said, respectfully not disclosing how Brian took his own life.
An inquest is scheduled.
“The Hillsdale Police Department joins the many members of New Jersey’s law enforcement agencies who are mourning this loss,” the chief said. He also praised the work of the search team members.
Brian played a significant role with the federal Drug Enforcement Administration as assistant special agent-in-charge of the Newark office. More importantly, he commanded the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force (HIDA) — a special unit made up of officers from various local, county, state and federal agencies who conducted major narcotics investigations in Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Union and Passaic counties.
Out of respect for Brian’s family, CLIFFVIEW PILOT will not publish any other details of his death. We will, however, publish any tributes or remembrances that you contribute.
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