Audio, Video Released In Update Of Fatal Marlboro Police Chase Probe

MARLBORO, NJ — In the continuing investigation of a Marlboro police pursuit that ended in a fatal crash Nov. 9, 2022 in Old Bridge, the state released video footage and audio from the incident.

The footage and audio from a 911 call about an attempted car theft in Marlboro and from police radio transmissions were released by Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin's office Friday.

The suspect in the attempted theft, Samuel Villar, now 20, of Somerset, sped away and was pursued by a Marlboro police officer responding to the call.

The car Villar was driving struck unrelated cars, including one driven by Arturo Tlapa Luna of Freehold as he drove home with his family, the state said in a news release.

The recordings are being released per policies established by the Attorney General’s Office in 2019 designed "to promote the fair, impartial, and transparent investigation of fatal police encounters," the state said.

The recordings are available here.

They include the original call from a resident to Marlboro police who saw someone attempting to enter his car, and other police radio transmissions and video of the chase.

Luna, 33, was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash at the Spring Hill Road intersection in Old Bridge. Members of his family in the car were treated at a local hospital for their injuries and survived.

Villar was arrested at the time and charged with one count of first-degree aggravated manslaughter for Luna's death, four counts of second-degree aggravated assault and one count of second-degree eluding, one count of second-degree employing a juvenile and one count of third-degree theft, according to authorities.

A 17-year-old juvenile teen boy who was fleeing with him was taken into custody and charged with an act of juvenile delinquency for offenses which if committed by an adult would constitute as one count of third-degree burglary, one count of fourth-degree joyriding, and one count of third-degree conspiracy, authorities said at the time.

Luna was driving home with his wife Maria, his two children, and his father early that morning on Route 9 south when his car was struck in the pursuit.

Luna worked at the Pizza & Pasta Factory in Marlboro, and his death left fellow employees and customers grief-stricken, his employer, Antonio Romeo DiSantillo, said at the time.

The officer involved in the pursuit has been identified as Marlboro Police Sgt. Greg Arrone, the attorney general's office said in the update.

The crash took place at 2:14 a.m. Nov. 9, 2022, near the intersection of Spring Valley Road and Route 9 South in Old Bridge, after Arrone attempted to stop a vehicle in an investigation of an attempted car theft from a residence in Marlboro, the state said in the news release.

The car Villar was driving was reported stolen in New Brunswick on Oct. 23, Middlesex County law enforcement authorities said in November.

The crash is under investigation by the Office of Public Integrity and Accountability, the state said.

The investigation is ongoing and no further information is being released at this time, the state said.

State law requires that the Attorney General’s Office conduct all investigations of a person’s death that occurs during an encounter with a law enforcement officer acting in the officer’s official capacity or while the decedent is in custody.

Separately, the Independent Prosecutor Directive, which was issued in December 2019, outlines a 10-step process for conducting these investigations. The directive establishes procedures governing such investigations to ensure that they are conducted in a full, impartial and transparent manner, the Attorney General's Office said.

Under both state law and the directive, when the entire investigation is complete, the case will be presented to a grand jury, typically consisting of 16 to 23 citizens, to make the decision regarding whether criminal charges will be filed, the state said.

More information about how fatal police encounters are investigated in New Jersey under the Independent Prosecutor Directive is posted on the Attorney General’s website.