Drunk Driver Kills Man 1 Minute After Fleeing Crash: Cops

A Pompton Plains man is accused of crashing into a parked car in Pequannock Thursday afternoon, fleeing the scene and police, then colliding with another motorist head-on and killing him just a minute later, police said.

Police responded to a report of a motor vehicle accident on the Newark Pompton Turnpike near New Read Street at 4:33 p.m., Captain Christopher DePuyt said. When officers arrived, they found a vehicle that had struck a parked car and a driver that appeared to be “disoriented,” DePuyt said.

The driver, later identified as Jeffrey Afflitto, 31, continued to press down on the car’s accelerator while still in contact with the parked car, DePuyt said. Officers tried making numerous attempts to get the driver’s attention and get inside the vehicle but were unable to, DePuyt said.

Afflitto was then able to free his vehicle from the parked car and sped away from the scene. Within a minute, police were advised of a serious car crash in nearby Wayne Township.

Lt. Dan Daly of the Wayne Township Police said Afflitto crossed over the center line and collided head-on with Paul Amarose, 63, of Oak Ridge, which set the victim’s vehicle on fire.

Amarose was airlifted to Saint Joseph’s Medical Center where he succumbed to his injuries, Daly said.

Afflitto was taken to the same hospital and charged with driving while intoxicated. Additional charges by both Pequannock and Wayne police departments are pending.