Port Authority Cops Arrest Man With $88K In Toll Violations, Fees

FORT LEE, NJ — Port Authority Police arrested a man Wednesday who owes more than $88,000 in unpaid tolls and fees.

Officer Leonel Gonzalez saw Anthony Cotugno, 60, of Newark drive a 2001 Lincoln sedan through an EZPass-only lane at the George Washington Bridge lower level at about noon and not pay the toll, said Joe Pentangelo, a Port Authority Police spokesman.

The Lincoln did not have an EZPass transmitter and Cotugno could not provide police with one, Pentangelo said.

Cotugno had incurred more than $88,000 in unpaid tolls and fees: More than more than $40,700 at Port Authority-managed crossings and another $47,000 on the New Jersey Turnpike, Pentangelo said.

The Lincoln sedan was impounded and Cotugno was charged with theft and toll evasion, Pentangelo said.

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Anthony Cotugno, 60 — Port Authority Police Department