Millionaire Grandfather Formally Indicted on Second-Degree Homicide Charges Following Barnegat Bay Tragedy
The legal hammer has officially dropped on 64-year-old Stephen Schneider following the Barnegat Bay tragedy that claimed the lives of his daughter’s only two children. Prosecutors have formally indicted the millionaire grandfather on two criminal counts of reckless vessel homicide, alongside charges of boating under the influence (BUI) and the careless operation of a vessel. Because these offenses are classified as second-degree felonies under state law, Schneider now faces up to 20 years in state prison if convicted.
The formal indictments arrive after weeks of intense forensic investigation and the unsealing of critical evidence regarding the operator’s sobriety at the time of the collision. Investigators revealed that a midnight emergency search warrant executed at 12:46 a.m. yielded a blood alcohol concentration of 0.16 percent, exactly double the legal limit. This hard chemical data completely dismantled Schneider’s initial claims to state troopers that he had only consumed three beers during a family dinner at a local waterfront restaurant.
The tragic incident unfolded on Barnegat Bay near Berkeley Township, when Schneider’s 30-foot speedboat slammed directly into an illuminated channel marker without braking. The violent impact instantly ejected nine-year-old Mya Bella Golabek and her seven-year-old brother, Sigmund “Siggy” Paul Golabek, into the dark water. Despite immediate recovery efforts and emergency medical intervention, both children succumbed to their injuries, shattering their family and sparking immense public grief across New Jersey.
Unsealed prosecution filings and court schedules have confirmed that the judicial process is moving forward rapidly. The presiding judge has officially locked in the next crucial court hearing for mid-September, where defense and prosecution teams will address ongoing motions and pre-trial evidentiary standards. As the case proceeds toward trial, the severe second-degree charges underscore the state’s hardline stance against operating watercraft under the influence.
