Suspect Arrested After Child Injured in Hit-and-Run in Ocean County

Suspect in Custody After Child Injured in Hit-and-Run Incident

Suspect Arrested After Child Injured in Hit-and-Run in Ocean County

According to the Ocean County Prosecutor office, on March 27, 2026, Jose Perez‑Parada, 35, of Jackson Township, was charged with knowingly leaving the scene of a motor vehicle crash resulting in serious bodily injury following an incident that occurred earlier that evening in Lakewood.

At approximately 8:30 p.m., officers from the Lakewood Township Police Department responded to the area of Hope Chapel Road and Hope Hill Lane for a report of a pedestrian struck by a vehicle.

A joint investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit – Vehicular Homicide Squad, the Lakewood Township Police Department, and the Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit determined that a Hyundai Elantra traveling northbound on Hope Chapel Road struck a juvenile pedestrian and fled the scene.

The victim was transported to Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune, where he remains in critical but stable condition.

Investigators later identified Perez‑Parada as the driver of the Hyundai involved in the crash. He was taken into custody at Lakewood Township Police Headquarters and subsequently transported to the Ocean County Jail, where he is currently lodged pending a detention hearing.

Prosecutor Billhimer commended the coordinated efforts of all agencies involved for their swift and thorough work on this investigation.

The charges are merely accusations. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law. R.P.C. 3.6(b)(6)