FLEMINGTON, N.J. – The scene was horrific. A young man was killed in a gruesome workplace accident. Now, his family is fighting for justice.
Eonias Mateo-Perez, just 22, died last summer. He was working at Saint Magdalen Cemetery in Flemington. The date was July 10, 2024.
Mateo-Perez was operating a massive wood chipper. It was a Bandit Industries model, the “Intimidator 19XPC.” But something went terribly wrong.
Court documents obtained by Law & Crime reveal a lawsuit has been filed by his estate. They claim the powerful machine was defective.
The official complaint alleges the chipper lacked key safety features. It also reportedly malfunctioned. Mateo-Perez was tragically “drawn into the feed system.” He was shredded at a “high rate of speed.”
The Intimidator 19XPC is a beast. The manufacturer boasts its feed system generates over 10,800 pounds of pulling power. That’s an enormous force.
Mateo-Perez’s job involved feeding tree branches into that unforgiving machine. The lawsuit claims he had no way to know the machine was missing safety guards. He was allegedly pulled in, unable to stop the process. He died almost instantly.
The family is suing under the New Jersey Product Liability Act. They are seeking damages. The claim cites “the loss of his companionship and prospective services.” It also seeks to cover funeral costs and other end-of-life expenses.
According to the suit, the chipper simply “did not properly shut off.” It did not prevent a user from being “drawn into the machine.” The case will now focus on those alleged design failures.