Police: Car racing on Vineland street crashes, splits in half | Courier-Post | courierpostonline.com
VINELAND — A 26-year-old Vineland man was charged with street racing Tuesday after he told police he reached about 80 mph before a crash split his car in half.Phillip M. Colaneri of the 1200 block of North East Boulevard told Officer Jason Sikora he was headed west on Foster Avenue in his 1998 Honda Civic at 8 p.m. behind two vehicles that were racing, according to a police report.As he approached Lilac Drive, Colaneri told the officer, one of the vehicles — a black pickup — cut him off, causing him to slam on his brakes and lose control of the car.Sikora asked Colaneri how the truck cut him off if it was racing in front of him. Colaneri then admitted he was racing with an Acura driven by a friend, police said. He estimated their speed at about 80 mph, according to police.The crash scene was in a residential neighborhood with a 40 mph speed limit and a sign posted to warn drivers that a deaf child resides in the area.The city’s Emergency Medical Service responded and took Colaneri to South Jersey Healthcare Regional Medical Center to be treated for a leg injury.Colaneri told police it felt like he broke his right leg. His car was towed from the scene to Caldero’s Towing on Oak Road.A pedestrian told police he witnessed the crash. At first, the man told police, he heard vehicles racing as he walked along Foster Avenue.The witness said he saw three vehicles — the car driven by Colaneri, a white Honda or Accord, and a black pickup — heading west on Foster Avenue. The truck cut in front of Colaneri’s vehicle, which then crashed, the witness told police. The white car and the pickup continued west, the witness said, adding the car returned a few moments later.A police investigation determined Colaneri was speeding, lost control, sideswiped a telephone pole and crashed into a tree. The two pieces of the car came to rest on opposite sides of Foster Avenue, according to police.The Civic, with racing decals on the driver’s side windows, split in half right behind the driver’s seat.Colaneri also was issued summonses for reckless driving and having no insurance.
Originally Posted by AmericanSoldier
