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ENGLEWOOD, N.J.—On Oct. 17 at about 11 p.m., an 18-year-old female was walking home after work on East Englewood Avenue, just west of Grand Avenue, when an oncoming car veered across the street and struck her as she walked along the sidewalk.
The victim was sent tumbling over the hood of the vehicle instead of under it and ended up landing on her back and then bouncing to her feet. The car then fled the scene. The girl made it back to her home, which was relatively close to the accident scene, and called police. Officers responded and she was later transported to a local hospital where she was treated and released for back and leg injuries.
A local security system caught the entire incident on camera. Englewood detectives located several small parts of the suspect vehicle’s front end and recovered the accident footage.
“We determined that the suspect vehicle was a 2008-2012 Honda Accord. With the assistance of New Jersey’s Motor Vehicle Services, our Detectives identified similar vehicles that were registered in our area,” said Englewood Police Detective Capt. Timothy Torell.
On the evening of Oct. 23 at about 10 p.m., detectives located the suspect vehicle parked on a street in Leonia. With the assistance of Leonia Police, Jonathan Hintze, the registered owner, was located and later charged in connection with the hit and run.
Hintze, 30, a longtime resident of Leonia, has been charged with aggravated assault with a weapon, aggravated assault with a motor vehicle and knowingly leaving an accident scene involving injury. He was transported to the Bergen County Jail the next morning, where records show he was still lodged on Oct. 31.
“We have determined that the victim and Hintze do not know each other and our detectives are attempting to conclusively determine Hintze’s motive for the assault,” said Torell. “This is still an ongoing investigation and more charges are expected.”
Anyone with information is urged to contact Englewood Police Criminal Investigations Division at (201) 568-4875.