Ocean County authorities have filed additional charges against a Manchester Township man accused of causing a head-on crash in Toms River while allegedly under the influence of alcohol and controlled dangerous substances.
Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer announced that Andrew Gajewski, 30, was charged on June 16 with two additional counts of Assault by Auto—specifically Causing Serious Bodily Injury While Driving Impaired—in connection with a May 18 crash on Route 37.
The collision occurred at approximately 8:30 p.m. near Batchelor Street when officers from the Toms River Township Police Department responded to reports of a serious motor vehicle crash. Investigators determined that a 2022 Ford F-150 driven by Gajewski collided head-on with a 2021 GMC Acadia.
According to authorities, Gajewski fled the scene on foot following the crash. The driver of the GMC suffered serious injuries and was transported to Jersey Shore University Medical Center before later being transferred to a rehabilitation facility. A passenger in the GMC and a passenger in the Ford were both taken to Community Medical Center in Toms River, where they were treated and released.
Police located Gajewski in a wooded area near the crash site. Prosecutors said he resisted arrest and assaulted a Toms River Police K-9 during the encounter before being taken into custody. He was subsequently transported to Community Medical Center for treatment of injuries sustained during his apprehension.
Investigators reported that officers observed signs of intoxication and obtained a court-authorized warrant for a blood draw. The subsequent investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit–Vehicular Homicide Squad, Toms River Township Police Department, and Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit determined that Gajewski was traveling on the wrong side of the roadway at the time of the crash.
Authorities also found evidence that he had been speeding and driving recklessly shortly before the collision.
As a result of the investigation, Gajewski was initially charged with Leaving the Scene of a Motor Vehicle Crash Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury, three counts of Assault by Auto, Resisting Arrest, and Injuring an Animal Used by a Law Enforcement Agency. He also received multiple motor vehicle summonses, including Reckless Driving, Careless Driving, Failure to Maintain Lane, Leaving the Scene of a Motor Vehicle Crash Causing Injury, and Failure to Report an Accident.
Following his release from the hospital, Gajewski was lodged in the Ocean County Jail but was later released under New Jersey’s bail reform laws.
Prosecutors said laboratory analysis of the blood sample later revealed that Gajewski was under the influence of alcohol and other controlled dangerous substances at the time of the crash and was unfit to operate a motor vehicle. Based on those findings, authorities filed the additional assault-by-auto charges.
On June 17, detectives from the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit–Vehicular Homicide Squad and the Toms River Township Police Department arrested Gajewski without incident at his residence. He was transported to the Ocean County Jail, where he remains pending a detention hearing.
Billhimer credited the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit–Vehicular Homicide Squad, Toms River Township Police Department, Toms River Police Department K-9 Unit, and the Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit for their work on the investigation.
