Another teen e-bike rider killed in accident—NJ Top News
Here's the stories you'll be talking about on the New Jersey 101.5 Morning Show on Wednesday:
🔗 Teen e-bike rider killed by UPS truck in Southampton
Another fatal e-bike accident has happened in New Jersey just two weeks before new laws and regulations go into effect to try and prevent such tragedies.
New Jersey State Police confirm a teenager was struck and killed by a UPS delivery truck before 11 a.m. on Tranquility Court in Southampton.
Police have not identified the teenager or given any details about the accident. NJ.com identified the teen as Chase Sudano, a wrestler at St. Augustine High School.
UPS issued a statement saying they were "heartbroken" by the accident and referred all questions to investigators. "We are fully cooperating with authorities to understand what happened," the statement said.
New rules governing e-bikes are set to take effect July 1. They include age restrictions on riders under 15, helmet requirements as well as licensure and registration of e-bikes with the MVC.
🔗 Driver in Stafford ICE incident now in custody
🚨 The driver involved in an ICE confrontation on Route 72 is now in custody with a gunshot wound.
➡️ Questions remain about whether he was the immigrant ICE agents were trying to arrest.
⚠️ The incident quickly became a flashpoint in New Jersey's debate over police cooperation with ICE.
STAFFORD — The driver of a van involved in a violent confrontation with ICE agents on Route 72 is now in custody after seeking treatment for a gunshot wound, according to law enforcement sources. But nearly 24 hours after the incident, key questions remain unanswered, including whether the driver was the person federal agents were originally trying to arrest.
As details emerged in stages throughout Monday, the incident quickly became political ammunition in the ongoing debate over New Jersey's Immigrant Trust Directive, often criticized by conservatives as a "sanctuary state" policy. Republican critics argued the confrontation demonstrated the dangers of limiting local police cooperation with federal immigration authorities, while Stafford police maintained they followed state rules governing their involvement in immigration enforcement operations.
Two law enforcement sources told New Jersey 101.5 that the driver of the vehicle involved in an incident with ICE agents on Route 72 in the Manahawkin section walked into a hospital for treatment of a gunshot wound. The FBI was notified by the hospital.
The name of the hospital was not disclosed, but Hackensack Meridian Health Southern Ocean Medical Center is located nearby.
Neither ICE nor the FBI responded to New Jersey 101.5's requests for additional information.
🔗 PBA defends Stafford police after ICE incident
☑️Stafford police faced criticism after an ICE agent was injured
☑️The state PBA president says officers followed New Jersey law and their training
☑️Critics argue police should have done more before the suspect fled the scene
Stafford police found themselves at the center of New Jersey's immigration debate after an ICE agent was injured during an attempted arrest on Route 72 and the suspect escaped, triggering criticism from those who believe local police should work more closely with federal immigration authorities.
The department's public response appeared designed to navigate the state's long-running political divide over immigration enforcement. Their statement on Facebook emphasized compliance with New Jersey's Immigrant Trust Directive while also highlighting the assistance officers provided once a federal agent was injured.
But that balancing act has drawn scrutiny from both critics of "sanctuary state" policies and those who want a clearer separation between local policing and federal immigration enforcement.
The state president of the police union, however, came to their defense.
Under the state's Immigrant Trust Directive, law enforcement agencies generally may not assist ICE agents with civil immigration enforcement activities. If criminal activity occurs, officers may provide assistance and investigate as they would any other crime.
"Stafford Township police went in there, they responded to the scene, they secured the scene as they should have. These guys did a remarkable job under certainly a confusing and chaotic situation, but again, they followed the law, they followed their training and they just did a tremendous job," Andreyev told Eric Scott for New Jersey 101.5's "Jersey Thing" program.
🔗 NJ drunk driver, wanted by ICE, admits causing double fatal crash
⚠️ Red Bank man admits guilt in a Lakewood crash that killed a mom and daughter.
➡️ Police said Raul Luna-Perez was speeding and drunk, with cocaine in his system when he crossed into oncoming traffic.
🔴 The state will seek two consecutive 10-year prison terms for aggravated manslaughter.
A Red Bank man living in this country illegally has admitted to causing a deadly crash last summer that killed a mother and her daughter in Lakewood.
On Monday, Raul Luna-Perez pleaded guilty in Toms River before Superior Court Judge Guy P. Ryan to two counts of aggravated manslaughter and one count of assault by auto.
Investigators found that 43-year-old Luna-Perez, a Mexican national, was drunk and had cocaine in his system at the time of a head-on, high-speed crash that killed Maria Pleitez, 42, and her 11-year-old child, Dayanara Cortes.
On July 26, 2025, at 11:20 p.m., Luna-Perez was driving a Dodge Durango with one passenger and was speeding about 60 mph when he crossed a double yellow line into oncoming traffic.
He passed four other cars before crashing head-on with a Nissan Sentra, near the intersection of Cross Street and Hearthstone Drive.
Pleitez was pronounced dead at the scene. Her daughter, who had been in the front seat, was hospitalized, where she was pronounced dead.
The case quickly became another focal point for conservatives critical of New Jersey’s immigrant trust directive.
Luna-Perez had been arrested three times before the deadly crash, ICE said.
Republican Assemblyman Paul Kanitra took to social media to say that Luna-Perez was “protected from deportation for years despite a rap sheet a mile long.”
His record, however, comprised low-level offenses, not felonies: He faced a disorderly persons offense and two traffic violations, all three handled by a Municipal Court.
🔗 Mount Holly cancels 4th of July celebration, safety concerns cited
Citing security concerns and what they termed as "alarming violence," Mount Holly officials have cancelled the township's Fourth of July celebration.
The announcement seemed to take residents and some elected council members by surprise.
Preparations had been ongoing for the celebration marking the country's 250th anniversary.
In a joint statement posted on Facebook, Mount Holly Township and its police department said safety of the public was paramount. "We could not enact a viable, actionable solution in such a short period of time to alleviate our security concerns without incurring additional, significant costs to the township and our residents," the statement said.
Neither the township nor the police department offered any specifics about any security concerns, by said they had been monitoring other events for security measures.
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Gallery Credit: The Associated Press
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Gallery Credit: Erin Vogt
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