Crime & Safety
Manchester Man Indicted in Crash That Killed Ocean Gate Cop
Police say Erick P. Uzcategui was drunk when he crashed into Jason Marles' car
A Manchester Township man remains free on $250,000 bail after being indicted for vehicular homicide in the Thanksgiving on the Garden State Parkway that claimed the life of an off-duty Ocean Gate police officer.
Erick P. Uzcategui, 32, of Eleventh Avenue, is accused by an Ocean County grand jury of driving his new BMW sports utility vehicle recklessly causing the death of Patrolman Jason Marles.
Police said Uzcategui rear-ended the car Marles was driving north on the Parkway in Toms River to get to his home in Point Pleasant Beach. The impact caused Marles’ Jeep to slam into a guardrail, run off the road, and burst into flames, killing the lawman who had just worked two consecutive shifts in Ocean Gate.
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Ironically, his assignment was to look for drunken drivers. Police said Uzcategui was drunk at the time of the crash. Assistant Prosecutor Steven N. Cucci said he admitted having five vodka drinks and using cocaine at a motel in Seaside Heights.
The grand jury also charged Uzcategui with having the steroid Oxandrolone at the time of the crash.
