An unlicensed juvenile driver eluded police Friday night, reaching speeds of 118 mph in a 35 mph zone before colliding with another vehicle and killing two people in Toms River, according to authorities.
According to the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office, the child faces charges of aggravated manslaughter. Officials declined to disclose his age.
Two passengers in the struck automobile are in critical condition, according to authorities.
Toms River police attempted to stop the vehicle around 10:45 p.m. for speeding eastbound on the Thomas A. Mathis Bridge, according to authorities.
According to investigators, the driver sped north on Route 35, prompting police to end the chase.
According to Seaside Heights police, the automobile was later detected doing 118 mph in a 35 mph zone on Route 35 south.
At 10:58 p.m., the vehicle collided with another car near the intersection of Routes 37 and 166, according to police.
Both the driver and the front seat passenger in the second vehicle were pronounced dead on the site. Authorities did not reveal their identities on Saturday.
Two backseat passengers in the second vehicle were critically injured and sent to Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune, where they are now in critical condition, according to officials.
The teenage driver was unharmed in the incident, but two passengers were treated for minor injuries at a nearby hospital, according to authorities.
The results of a court-ordered blood draw for the driver were still pending as of Saturday.
The driver is also charged with aggravated assault causing bodily injury while eluding, two counts of death by auto, two counts of causing death while driving unlicensed, two counts of causing injury while driving unlicensed, two counts of aggravated assault manifesting extreme disregard for the value of human life, eluding, and four counts of assault by automobile.
He is currently being housed at the Ocean County Juvenile Detention Center.