AG task force investigates fatal crash following police pursuit

NEWARK, NJ — The N.J. Attorney General’s Shooting Response Task Force is conducting an investigation of a fatal motor vehicle crash that occurred early in the morning on Aug. 24 in Newark when police pursued a vehicle that subsequently crashed into the car driven by the victim, fatally injuring him.

According to the preliminary investigation, an officer of the Hillside Police Department was in pursuit of a Nissan Altima occupied by three men. The fatal crash occurred at approximately 2:37 a.m. at Bragaw Avenue and Aldine Street in Newark when the fleeing car struck the Ford Mustang the victim was driving broadside, pushing it into a utility pole. The victim, who was trapped in his car, was pronounced dead at the scene. There were no other occupants in his car. Two of the men from the other car were taken to University Hospital in Newark with injuries that are not life-threatening. The third was taken to the Hillside Police Department.

The identities of the decedent and the three men in the other car are not being released. The investigation is ongoing and no further information is being released at this time.

This investigation is being conducted pursuant to a law enacted in January 2019, which requires that the Attorney General’s Office conduct investigations of a person’s death that occurs during an encounter with a law enforcement officer acting in the officer’s official capacity or while the decedent is in custody.