Authorities in Newark, New Jersey said that an off-duty cop was involved in a fatal car crash and that instead of reporting the accident, he took the victim’s body to his mom’s home.
Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II said on Wednesday that 25-year-old Newark Police Officer Louis Santiago “failed to maintain his lane and traveled on the right shoulder of the Garden State Parkway” while behind the wheel of his 2005 Honda Accord late on November 1.
He allegedly crossed the path of 29-year-old Damian Z. Dymka and fatally struck him at around 3 a.m. the victim was a Bergen County nurse.
Following the deadly crash, Santiago and a passenger, Albert Guzman, decided not to call 911 and brought Dymka’s body to the officer’s mother’s home.
“Santiago then took the body to his home in Bloomfield where he, his mother, and Guzman allegedly discussed what to do with the body. Eventually, Santiago went back to the scene.”
Santiago’s father would later call 911 and report the incident; when cops arrived, Dymka’s body was still in the back seat of Santiago’s vehicle.
The Newark officer was hit with a slew of charges including reckless vehicular homicide and moving human remains while his mom and Guzman were charged with conspiracy to desecrate human remains.
