Police investigate death at Suffern NY Quarry
Suffern Police let a County of Rockland vehicle enter the access road to the Suffern Quarry Aug. 4, 2025. There were reports of a body recovered from the quarry.
- The body of 57-year-old Mario Martinez-Campos was found in the former Tilcon Quarry lake in Suffern.
- The cause of death is under investigation by the Rockland Medical Examiner and Suffern Police.
- The area is considered dangerous due to steep slopes and the risk of drowning.
SUFFERN – Authorities have identified the body of a 57-year-old man found floating this week in the former Tilcon Quarry lake.
Mario Martinez-Campos’s death remains under investigation as to how he ended up in the quarry. Authorities found him face down in the lake after teenagers reported seeing his body.
Martinez-Campos lived in the village and was a native of Guatemala, Mayor Michael Curley said. The village has a large population of people from Central America and Mexico.
Curley said investigators released the man’s identity after notifying his next of kin. The Rockland Medical Examiner’s Office has been conducting an autopsy on the body and an investigation into the cause of death.
The Suffern Police Department Detective Bureau investigation is continuing, Curley said.
Authorities recovered the body on Monday, Aug. 4, and have maintained the site as a crime scene.
The body was wedged in a spot difficult to reach, likely having fallen down the steep slopes. The Rockland County Sheriff’s Office brought its boat to the site for a recovery operation. The Ramapo Police Department assisted the recovery; police closed off access to the former quarry pit.
Police have cordoned off the area to the public because of the inherent dangers of people slipping down the slopes or drowning in the water.
The 60-acre quarry was sold to a New Jersey developer in 2022 by Ramapo for $5 million.
No development plans yet for former Suffern quarry
Ramapo had paid $1 for the property from Tilcon in December 2006 after Tilcon closed the quarry, leaving a large hole on the 60-acre site overlooking Suffern’s main business district.
Ramapo fielded three offers.
Three proposals before the $5 million offer to buy the quarry ranged from $3.2 million to $1 million, along with offers to lease the 60 acres pending an option to buy down the road.
The developers proposed commercial development, such as warehousing, a landscaping business and storage, and a film-production facility.
Curley has said no development plans have been filed with the village land-use boards.
The New Jersey buyer, DelCalzo Realty of Paramus, had plans to seek Suffern land-use approvals to build 500,000 square feet of industrial space on the property. The property is zoned for light industry and doesn’t allow for housing unless the Suffern Board of Trustees grants a zone change.
He said plans have been discussed to build a data center.
Anyone with information on Martinez-Campos may call the police at 845-357-2300.
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Steve Lieberman covers government, breaking news, courts, police, and investigations. Reach him at [email protected] Twitter: @lohudlegal/ Read more articles and bio. Our local coverage is only possible with support from our readers.
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