Prosecutor: Truck driver charged with homicide in deadly Route 1 crash in South Brunswick

The tractor-trailer collided with a van on its way to an adult day care center, killing the three people inside.

Matt Trapani

Jul 3, 2024, 9:40 PM

Updated 99 days ago

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The driver of a tractor-trailer that crashed into a van on its way to an adult day care center earlier this year has been charged with homicide and manslaughter, according to the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office.
The crash happened on April 12 at the intersection of Route 1 and Ridge Road in South Brunswick.
Officials say that 43-year-old Joseph Vega, of Bridgeton, was transporting an oversized concrete load when he failed to stop at a red light and collided with the van. The van’s driver and two passengers were killed in that crash.
Police said that the time that during the crash, a fire erupted, burning both the van and the cab of the truck. Vega was able to escape with minor injuries.
“The impact was significant. It pushed [the van] almost 200 yards from the intersection,” South Brunswick Deputy Police Chief Jim Ryan said after the crash.
U.S. Marshals arrested Vega in Georgia where he will be held pending extradition to New Jersey.