Official's suicide has many asking, 'Why?'
BY JESSICA SMITH
Staff Writer

MONROE - Township Construction Official Ronald Appleby, 60, was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound on his front lawn last Thursday.

Police and emergency workers responded to Appleby's home on Geraldine Drive after receiving a 911 call from a neighbor who found his body around 3:30 p.m. April 5, Middlesex County Prosecutor Bruce Kaplan said.

A note was found at the scene, but Kaplan would not discuss its content.

In response to questions regarding a possible investigation in which records from the construction office were subpoenaed recently, neither Kaplan nor Township Attorney Joel Shain would confirm that a probe was taking place. U.S. Attorney's Office spokesman Michael Drewniak would not provide information as to whether there was an investigation.

"When it comes to an issue of an investigation of any kind ... under no circumstances would we do anything but be fully cooperative," Mayor Richard Pucci said.

Kaplan said the investigation into Appleby's death is continuing.

"The matter is still being reviewed," Kaplan said. "There are some outstanding matters that will be completed in the near future."

Pucci extended his condolences to the family, and said Appleby was not only a highly regarded official in town, but also a friend.

"This tragedy deeply affects me, and my family too, in a personal light," Pucci said.

Appleby had arrived home from Florida April 4, the night before his death, though he was not supposed to return until April 10, according to a neighbor. His wife was in Florida at the time of his death.

Appleby oversaw the township's construction department for 25 years. The department is responsible for issuing all construction permits, as well as providing inspection services for all permits. Certificates of occupancy for township buildings are also issued by the department.

Township Environmental Protection Manager John Riggs said he was shocked by the news. According to Riggs, Appleby was a gregarious man with a strong personality.

"If you asked him a question, you got an answer," Riggs said. "He's the type of person you could go to. That's what I liked about him. He was straightforward, didn't beat around the bush."

Appleby also served on the Municipal Utilities Authority (MUA) for 26 years, and as chairman for 24 of those years. Named Commissioner of the Year in 2004, Pucci said Appleby received accolades from his peers for his outstanding work involving environmental conservation. He also served on the Planning Board, Shade Tree Commission and Insurance Commission. In 1988, he served on the Township Council for a year.

Appleby's wife, Donna, retired two years ago from her job as secretary to the mayor, after 18 years. His son, Ronald, is an assistant prosecutor in Middlesex County.

Attempts to reach family members were unsuccessful.

Vincent LaViola, a neighbor, said the close-knit neighborhood is still in shock.

"Everybody said the same thing - 'Why?,'" LaViola said. "I was home. I just wish he would have called me, or I would have gone over there."

According to LaViola, no one, including Appleby's family, noticed anything wrong preceding the incident. LaViola said he and Appleby often joked around and shared long talks, and that Appleby was very good to the children in the neighborhood.

"It's a huge loss," LaViola said. "He's a guy that would do anything for anybody, and then some. He wasn't a taker, he was a giver."

Along with other neighbors, LaViola shared Appleby's love of street rods, or antique "muscle" cars. The neighborhood would often throw block parties, which Appleby and his wife attended. LaViola said it was clear that Appleby loved his family.

Neighbor Roslyn Adackapara said although she did not know Appleby well, he seemed like a happy person, and she did not notice anything unusual going on with him from their brief interactions when she would see him walking his small, white dog around the neighborhood.

"He was a very nice person," Adackapara said. "We would always say 'Hi.'"

Appleby's death marks the second suicide by a utilities official in Middlesex County this year. Shawn Maloney, who served as director of New Brunswick's water utility and public properties department, took his own life amid a federal investigation that involved him.