BY ERIKA NORTON
WEST MILFORD — Police charged West Milford town council candidate Steven Castronova with a hit-and-run offense in June following an accident in a Route 23 restaurant parking lot.
Castronova is charged with leaving the scene and failure to report an accident after allegedly driving into a parked car outside the Grasshopper Irish Pub and Restaurant at 11:20 p.m. on June 23, according to a West Milford police report.
A message left for Castronova by The West Milford Messenger was not returned by press time.
Witnesses told police who arrived at the scene that a brown Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck backed into a parked blue Infiniti G37. One witness told police that he ran to the pickup truck and spoke with the driver, who he later identified as Castronova, as he was trying to leave the scene.
Castronova told the witness he did not hit the vehicle, the witness told police, before Castronova sped out of the busy parking lot. Another witness told police he also recognized the driver as being Castronova, according to the police report, and that the truck almost struck a pedestrian as it left the parking lot. The witness believed Castronova was intoxicated. However, he was not tested for alcohol.
At his houseAnother West Milford police officer responded to Castronova's residence about 10 minutes away from the bar, according to the report, while the first officer was at the Grasshopper. Upon arrival, the garage door was open with the lights on, and Castronova was sitting on a bar-type stool drinking beer. There were several beers around Castronova and two empty bottles sitting in the driveway.
Police asked Castronova where the pickup truck was. The vehicle is registered to another resident of the house, according to the report, but Castronova is known to drive it regularly.
Castronova, who appeared intoxicated, said he was “unaware of where the vehicle was and that he did not know who may have been driving it,” according to the report. He told the officer that it was not there.
A younger unidentified man, who said he was a resident, walked over and hit the switch to close the garage door, the report continued. While the door was going down, police said Castronova could be seen walking away toward the inside door.
The young man sat on the porch and said that he had been there all night. Police asked him where the truck was and who was driving it, but the man said he had no idea but that the truck was not there.
When asked where Castronova went and that police wanted to talk with him, the man said that Castronova was tired and that he was going to bed. This exchange can be heard on the audio recording obtained by The Messenger from the police, which was recorded by the police dashcam.
Truck foundA West Milford police officer noticed fresh tire marks leading through the front yard around the side of the house, according to the police report. The tire marks led to the back of the house, where police found a brown Chevrolet pickup bearing the same license plate number described by the accident witnesses.
The vehicle's hood was warm to the touch, the report continues, and footprints were visible in the grass leading out of the driver's side. The rear bumper of the vehicle also had damage consistent with the crash and paint transfer consistent with the other vehicle.
Before leaving the residence, police made several attempts to contact Castronova, but he did not answer the door.
Parking lot videoSurveillance video from the Grasshopper Irish Pub and Restaurant obtained by The Messenger allegedly shows a man who matches the description of Castronova leaving the bar and entering his vehicle. The footage shows the crash, a restaurant patron running to the truck, and the truck subsequently leaving the scene with a patron running after.
Castronova is charged with leaving the scene of an accident involving property damage, which could result in a fine of $200 to $400, up to 30 days of jail time, or both, for a first offense in New Jersey. It could also lead to a six-month suspension of his driver's license.
Second incident this yearThis is the second run-in with the police for Castronova this year.
Both Steven Castronova and his brother Richard Castronova own the Valley View Pub on Union Valley Road, and were charged on Tuesday, March 28, with allowing non-employees to stay at the bar after legal hours of sale, a violation of a town ordinance.
After failing to appear in court in April for the alleged town ordinance violation, a warrant was put out on May 5 for Steven Castronova's arrest, resulting in his arrest the next day. After his arrest on May 6, Castronova was released on bail.
Castronova's campaign responded that Castronova had received two summonses with two different dates, causing the mix up and his failure to appear.
Castronova, a Republican backed by the local GOP, has been a long-time member of the township's Planning Board. He was the top vote-getter in the Republican primary in June; he and seven other candidates are on the November ballot vying for two three-year terms on the town council.