A grieving mom is warning people about the dangers of wading into stagnant water, after, she says, her 41-year-old son contracted a deadly flesh-eating bacteria while chasing his dog into a stagnant pond. This article contains content that may be upsetting to some of our readers. California man Jeff Bova died recently from a bacterial infection he contracted three weeks earlier, his mother Susan McIntyre told NBC News. McIntyre says Bova followed his dog into a pond created by spring rainfall in March, and that the bacteria got into his body through a minor scratch on his arm.