A single-vehicle crash in a Perth Amboy neighborhood on August 23, 2020, led police to a far darker scene than an accident. At about 11:34 p.m. officers responding to a 911 call found 41-year-old Vidal Chito Carrasquillo-Vasquez inside a vehicle with multiple gunshot wounds. He was taken to Staten Island University Hospital and pronounced dead on August 24, 2020. Investigators determined the shots were fired while he was driving, causing him to lose control and crash; the case was classified as a homicide.

Authorities later arrested 42-year-old Robert Hagens of Edison and charged him with the murder of Carrasquillo-Vasquez, plus possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and unlawful possession of a weapon. Hagens had initially been arrested on August 24, 2020, on a separate conspiracy to possess cocaine charge; the homicide-related charges were added after further investigation. The motive for the shooting has not been disclosed.

Anyone with information about the shooting or the events leading up to the crash is asked to come forward.