Crime & Safety

High Speed Pursuit Ends with Drug Charges for Tent City Man

Manchester police chased man on Route 70 before arresting him in Lakehurst

A man who lives in the Lakewood Tent City homeless camp led Manchester police on a high-speed pursuit last weekend before being arrested and charged with numerous drug offenses, authorities said.

Robert Marcocci, 47, allegedly attempted to evade police by driving over 100 mph before striking a curb in Lakehurst and running on foot, said Manchester Police Department Capt. Lisa Parker. 

The pursuit began Saturday at about 3:30 a.m. when Officer Joseph Fastige observed a vehicle traveling at a high rate of speed on State Highway 70, near mile marker 41, according to Parker.

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When Fastige tried to catch up to the car for a motor vehicle stop, the driver accelerated from 85 mph to over 100 mph as it passed other vehicles and Officer Joseph Reilly, who was conducting a motor vehicle stop near mile marker 43, Parker said.

As Fastige tried to get close enough to read the registration, the vehicle went the wrong way on Route 70 in Lakehurst, entering the Eisenhower Circle and running over the curb and across the grass median of the circle, Parker said.

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The vehicle then stopped on the other side of the circle with four flat tires. At that time, Marcocci exited the vehicle and ran from Fastige, Parker said.

Marcocci led Fastige and Reilly on a foot pursuit on Myrtle Street in Lakehurst before Marcocci was found hiding behind a shed and placed under arrest, according to Parker. 

An investigation found that Marcocci observed Fastige pull behind his vehicle and he accelerated to avoid a summons for driving with a suspended license. Marcocci also had an outstanding warrant and threw two small bags of cocaine prior to being apprehended, Parker said.

Officers found another bag of cocaine in Marcocci's possession during booking and a crack pipe was found at the scene, Parker said

The vehicle driven by Marcocci was impounded and the Ocean County Sheriff’s Department K9 Unit assisted officers in the search for additional narcotics. Officers from the Lakehurst Police Department also assisted with the investigation, according to Parker.

Marcocci’s last documented address was in Trenton, but Parker said that now lives in Tent City in Lakewood. 

He was charged with obstructing the administration of law, resisting arrest by flight, resisting arrest, possession of cocaine, two counts of possession of drug paraphernalia, suppression of evidence, and numerous traffic offenses. Marcocci was transported to Ocean County Jail in lieu of $25,000 bail, Parker said.


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