A man is in custody charged with one count of second-degree vehicular homicide and nine other counts for his alleged role in a June 24 multi-vehicle accident in Robbinsville that claimed the life of a Hamilton man.
Mercer County Prosecutor Angelo J. Onofri and Robbinsville Chief of Police Christopher Nitti announced today that Robert E. Torres, 24, a resident of Philadelphia, PA, was arrested yesterday in Philadelphia by members of the U.S. Marshals NY/NJ Fugitive Task Force.
Torres is charged with one count of second-degree vehicular homicide, one count of third-degree operating a motor vehicle with a suspended or revoked license while involved in an accident resulting in death of another, one count of fourth-degree operating a motor vehicle with a suspended or revoked license while involved in an accident resulting in serious bodily injury of another, five counts of fourth-degree assault by auto causing serious bodily injury, and two counts of assault by auto causing bodily injury, a disorderly persons offense. He is being held pending extradition to New Jersey.
Prosecutors say that Torres was the driver of a white GMC Savana van involved in the accident in which Vincent Zitani, 23, of Yardville, was killed. They say that the van was traveling south on U.S. 130 around 6:30 p.m. on June 24 when Torres “caused a Pontiac Trans Am to cross the median in the area of Woodside Road, where it collided with two vehicles traveling in the opposite direction.” Prosecutors say Torres then fled the scene. The van was located the next morning in Langhorne, Pennsylvania.
Zitani, the driver of the Trans Am, was pronounced dead at the scene. All seven occupants of the remaining vehicles were hospitalized. They have since been released from the hospital.
The case remains under investigation by the Robbinsville Township Police Department and the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office Serious Collision Response Team. Anyone
with information is asked to contact Robbinsville Detective Sergeant Adrian Markowski at (609) 259-3900, or Prosecutor’s Detective Salvatore Vaccaro at (609) 273-7453.
