Burlington County Prosecutor Scott Coffina announced that a Delanco man has been indicted on homicide charges for causing the deaths of a married couple during a collision early last year in the jug handle at Route 130 northbound and Bridgeboro Road in Willingboro Township.
Amish Patel, 30, of Delanco, was indicted on two counts of Aggravated Manslaughter (First Degree), and two counts of Vehicular Homicide (Second Degree) for the deaths of Robert Stephens, 52, and his wife Janet, 50, of Burlington Township, on January 13, 2018.
The indictment was returned yesterday and signed by Prosecutor Coffina. An arraignment will be scheduled soon in Superior Court.
The homicide charges are based on the results of toxicology tests conducted on blood drawn from Patel following the collision. Patel was arrested and charged with two counts of Aggravated Manslaughter (First Degree) in March 2018. Patel, who was treated and released following the collision, also faces several traffic summonses in municipal court, including tickets for Driving While Intoxicated and Speeding.
The investigation revealed that the Stephens’ minivan was stopped in the jug handle waiting to cross Route 130 onto Bridgeboro Road when Patel, who was traveling northbound on Route 130, lost control of his BMW 440, entered the jug handle and crashed into the minivan at approximately 4:30 p.m.
The force of the impact propelled the minivan over the guardrail and down an embankment, where it submerged into a body of water that is part of Olympia Lakes. Efforts to resuscitate the couple after they were pulled from the water were unsuccessful.
Patel is being prosecuted by Assistant Prosecutor Josh Dennis, supervisor of the BCPO Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Unit. The collision was investigated by the Prosecutor’s Office and the Willingboro Township Police Department. Assistance was provided at the scene by the Delran Township Police Department, Edgewater Park Township Police Department and the New Jersey State Police. The lead investigators were BCPO Detective Michael Reagan and Willingboro Township Police Detective Ed Walker.
An indictment is an accusation. Defendants are presumed innocent unless or until proven guilty.
2019-48 Man Indicted for Homicide in Willingboro Double Fatal Collision