Police, Fire & Courts

Seaside Park Man, 68, Charged in Fatal Crash With Pedestrian

by
Daniel Nee
July 22, 2024

John Marrone (Photo: Ocean County Jail)

A Seaside Park man has been charged in connection with a motor vehicle accident that resulted in the death of a Toms River man on Sunday.

Prosecutors, in a statement released Monday, said John Marrone, 68, of Seaside Park, has been charged with causing death or injury while driving with a suspended or revoked driver’s license, and knowingly leaving the scene of a motor vehicle accident resulting in death.

The charges stem from an accident that occurred at approximately 2:50 p.m. Sunday. According to the statement, Toms River police were called to the area of Route 166 and Old Freehold Road for a report of a pedestrian having been struck by a motor vehicle. Responding officers determined that Gonzalo Jimenez-Hernandez, 48, of Toms River, stepped into the roadway and was struck by a motor vehicle being driven by Marrone. Jimenez-Hernandez was transported to Community Medical Center in Toms River, where he was pronounced deceased.

The investigation by Toms River police, the prosecutor’s office and the Ocean County Sheriff’s Office determined that a black Ford F-150 was traveling northbound on Route 166 when Jimenez-Hernandez stepped into the roadway and was struck by the pickup, which then “fled the scene,” the statement said.

The truck that struck the victim was later located unoccupied in a nearby apartment complex. Through investigation, detectives determined that the Ford F-150 was registered to Marrone. A short time later, officers located Marrone – on foot – in the vicinity of the truck, and he was taken into custody without incident. Marrone was then transported to Community Medical Center, where a draw of his blood was obtained pursuant to a court-authorized warrant. The results of the blood draw remain pending. Marrone was subsequently transported to the Ocean County Jail, where he is presently lodged pending a detention hearing.