NJ driver had 120 summonses before fiery crash into police cars, review finds

🚨Two Clifton officers narrowly avoided a fiery crash on Route 21

🚨Police charged a Passaic man with DWI after his SUV hit two parked police vehicles

🚨Records show the driver has received at least 120 traffic summonses since 2007

CLIFTON — Two police officers were hurt when a man suspected of being drunk hit two parked police vehicles early Sunday morning, causing them to catch fire.

Clifton police said the officers were investigating a crash on Route 21 north near River Road around 3:55 a.m. when Matthew Cancel, 32, of Passaic, came upon the vehicles parked in the left lane while driving an Acura MDX. The SUV burst into flames upon impact, and the fire spread to one of the police vehicles.

Two officers who were outside the vehicles narrowly avoided being struck, with one forced to jump over the concrete divider. A third officer inside one of the vehicles suffered a head injury, police said. One of two passengers in Cancel's SUV suffered a shoulder injury. Cancel, his passenger, and the officers were taken to hospitals for treatment.

Police said Cancel appeared to be intoxicated and charged him with driving while intoxicated and assault by auto. He was also issued several summonses for motor vehicle violations and is being held at the Passaic County Sheriff's Office Corrections Hub.

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Matthew Cancel

Court records show at least 120 previous summonses

A review of court records by the NJ PBA and Independent Online News found that Cancel has received at least 120 summonses from New Jersey police agencies dating back to 2007.

"This is outrageous. Officers have to jump over a divider, patrol cars bursting into flames, all to avoid a tragedy. This guy doesn't care about the law or the lives he puts in jeopardy. His license should have been suspended already from the last crash. He should have to go to court to prove he has the right to drive. We could be planning PBA members funerals today because of his reckless conduct," NJ State PBA President Peter Andreyev said.

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