Joseph M. Mazraani, 47, passed away on July 29, 2025. He is survived by his partner, Jennifer Sellitti; his mother, Therese Mazraani; his father, Milad Mazraani; his brother, Ralph Mazraani; and a wide circle of family, friends, colleagues, and fellow divers who loved him. He was predeceased by his brother, Rodolph Mazraani.

Born in Beirut, Lebanon, Joe grew up during the height of the Lebanese Civil War. At age 15, he immigrated to the United States, where he later graduated from the City University of New York with a degree in film studies and earned his JD magna cum laude from Seton Hall University School of Law.

Joe was a founding partner at the New Brunswick law firm Mazraani, Liguori & Farmer, where he practiced both criminal and civil law. He is survived by his partners and friends, Joe Liguori and Jeffrey Farmer, and their dedicated office staff. In the courtroom, Joe was a force of nature—brilliant on his feet and on paper, with a mastery of the rules of evidence that allowed him to dismantle cases before they began. It was the conflicts Joe witnessed growing up in Lebanon that led him to be peculiarly sensitive to victims of government oppression. He dedicated his life to criminal defense because he wanted to be the bulwark between the State and the individual. If you sought to take away his client's freedom, you had to go through him first. He left nothing on the field. He could turn a routine pretrial motion into hours of argument that, for better or worse, held the attention of everyone in the room. When cases went to trial, his authenticity, clarity, and dramatic approach won over juries time and again.

Joe's career included victories in two separate cases that led to exonerations recognized by the National Registry of Exonerations. He cared deeply for the people he represented, and his clients adored him. So did his colleagues. He gave countless hours to advising friends and mentoring young lawyers, offering trial strategies and insight drawn from years of experience. He was a trustee of the Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers of New Jersey, New Jersey State Bar Association, the Middlesex County Bar Association, and volunteered on several bench/bar committees aimed at elevating the practice of law in New Jersey. Judges, prosecutors, and fellow defense attorneys—whether exasperated by his relentless style or inspired by it—respected and learned from him.

Joe was known as one of the world's leading shipwreck hunters and technical divers and will be remembered as one of the great East Coast dive boat captains. His love of the ocean began in childhood summers by the Mediterranean. He became a certified scuba diver in the mid-1990s and soon began exploring wrecks along the Northeast coast aboard vessels like the Seeker, Homewrecker, Dina Dee, Big Mac, and Depth Charge. In 2010, he founded Atlantic Wreck Salvage and acquired his own vessel, D/V Tenacious, which he outfitted for ambitious deep-water expeditions.

Joe led numerous projects, from raising historical artifacts to searching for and documenting wrecks in the North Atlantic. After meeting Jennifer in 2015, the two became partners in life and in exploration. Together they located deep, uncharted wrecks far offshore, with a shared mission of documenting shipwrecks on Georges Bank, nearly 200 miles from their New Bedford launch point. In 2024, their team discovered the wreck of the 1856 passenger steamship Le Lyonnais, along with two additional unidentified shipwrecks. Joe died during a 2025 expedition aimed at identifying and documenting those sites, with Jennifer and four other members of his crew by his side.

His diving career was filled with memorable salvage efforts, technical dive expeditions, and remarkable "firsts." He participated in and led expeditions to HMHS Britannic (Titanic's sister ship), SS Andrea Doria, and RMS Lusitania. His recoveries included SS Ayuruoca's massive stern helm and steam whistles, SS Carolina's telegraphs, and SS Andrea Doria's foghorn and gyro compass repeater—to name a few. In May 2019, he discovered Britannic's bell, which was raised in 2025 for preservation in a Greek museum. He was credited with discovering the German submarine U-550, the last diveable U-boat in North Atlantic waters, U-53's final victim SS West Point, the bow of MV Stockholm, and multiple historic motor vessels and steamships.

Of utmost importance to Joe was educating the public about maritime history and inspiring the next generation of shipwreck divers. He was a proud associate member of the Boston Sea Rovers and a supporter of the New Jersey Maritime Museum. Joe leaves behind a devoted crew of divers who have vowed to carry on his work and preserve his legacy.

There were facets of Joe that only those closest to him truly knew. He cherished long hours spent with family, savoring deep conversations—especially around a table overflowing with Lebanese food. Joe and Jennifer built their home on a small farm in Millstone Township, New Jersey, where he found immense joy caring for the chickens, ducks, goats, and cows. He had a refined appreciation for good whiskey, fine cigars, and impeccably tailored suits. Yet, his greatest happiness came from being surrounded by loved ones. Though he rarely spoke of his feelings, his smile had a quiet power—making anyone caught in its warmth feel like the center of the universe.

Joe Mazraani was larger than life—kind, compassionate, and generous. A mentor and a student, a friend, brother, son, and partner. Whether motoring aboard D/V Tenacious, plunging into deep and dangerous waters, or defending his clients in court, he demanded the best of himself and those around him. Joe was always happy but never content—always pushing boundaries, including the ones he set for himself.

Some will say that the type of exploration Joe engaged in is not worth the risk. If viewed in isolation, perhaps it isn't. But nothing Joe did happened in isolation. It was his way of life. Joe understood better than anyone that life offers no guarantees. He lived every moment fully, without compromise. He did not want to die doing what he loved—none of us do. He wanted to survive it, to grow old doing it. But Joe embraced a life of extraordinary risk, and he would be the first to say that doing so was far better than a long life half-lived.

What is important to remember is that Joe died in the happiest place he had ever found, a place he spent so many years of his life trying to reach: aboard D/V Tenacious, miles and years from where he started, and with Jennifer and some of the people he loved the most right there with him. He would not want grief to stop us. He would want it to ignite in us the same spirit and passion that drove him—to relentlessly pursue the things we love, to share them with the people we love, and to live as if every day is a rare and extraordinary gift. That is his legacy.

A memorial fund honoring Joe's legacy is being established to support underwater exploration and the preservation of maritime history. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to: The Captain Joe Mazraani Memorial Fund. Contact Jennifer Sellitti at jsellitti@dvtenacious.com for address or donate online.