Victor T. Bartoloma, 35, told the Ridgewood officer arriving at the scene that he was the one who'd been in the crash on Jan. 15, but he really had brought his personal vehicle to the scene so that the individual initially in the accident could drive off, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said.
Surveillance cameras showed that Bartoloma was not the driver and was not present at the time of the crash, Musella said. A witness told police at the scene that Bartoloma wasn't the driver of the vehicle involved in the crash, the prosecutor said.
Bartoloma was charged on Thursday, Jan. 19 with second-degree hindering apprehension, and was suspended without pay from his duties as a police officer.
He released pending a first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack.
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