85-Year-Old Faces 10 Years For Hit And Run Killing

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  ASBURY PARK – An 85-year-old man has plead guilty in killing an Asbury Park resident in a hit and run incident, officials said.

  Back in December of 2018, Johnny Westbrook, 85, of Asbury Park, was parked outside of a local store waiting for Daniel Rivera, 63, of Asbury Park, who was a fellow tenant in his building.

  After waiting for several minutes, Rivera left the store and Westbrook drove along the sidewalk area, hit Rivera and dragged him several feet, before leaving him in the roadway, police said. 

  Investigation revealed that Westbrook and Rivera had been involved in a physical altercation a little more than one month before the incident due to Westbrook’s jealousy over the Rivera’s friendship with a woman.

  According to police, animosity culminated in Westbrook’s actions of running the victim down while he was walking home the week before Christmas. After his actions, Westbrook immediately fled the scene and returned to his apartment.

  Police ultimately found Westbrook’s car parked a few hundred feet from the crime scene with the victim’s blood and hair on the bottom of the vehicle.

  On July 9, Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Lori Linskey announced that Westbrook pleaded guilty to first degree Aggravated Manslaughter. He faces up to 10 years in prison, with 8.5 years parole ineligibility, when he returns for sentencing on August 19.