State trooper dies in off-duty Turnpike collision with truck

RIDGEFIELD (AP) — A New Jersey state police trooper has died in an off-duty auto accident.

State police say the accident occurred early Friday on the New Jersey Turnpike in Ridgefield.

Trooper Glenny Almonte was driving south in his own Honda Accord at about 1:45 a.m. when he hit a curb and guiderail near the Vince Lombardi service area. The car then hit a tractor-trailer heading south.

Almonte was transported to Hackensack University Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at approximately 2:30 a.m.

The accident closed the Turnpike's western spur for several hours.

The 28-year-old was a 2013 graduate of the state police academy, assigned to the Totowa station.

State Police Superintendent Col. Rick Fuentes says Almonte's death "saddens the entire State Police family."

The accident is under investigation.

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