Pedestrian Killed In Hit-And-Run Route 22 Crash In Somerset Co., Man Arrested: Prosecutor

Daniel Cole, 32, of Piscataway, was arrested after police said he hit a pedestrian with his SUV on Route 22 and fled on Saturday.

By Alexis Tarrazi, Patch Staff

Aug 24, 2026 11:39 AM EDT | Updated Aug 24, 2026 11:43 AM EDT

Daniel Cole, 32, of Piscataway, was charged with second -degree knowingly leaving the scene of an accident that resulted in death and third-degree hindering apprehension. (Somerset County Prosecutor's Office)

WATCHUNG, NJ — A Piscataway man was arrested after police say he fatally hit a pedestrian with his SUV on Route 22 and fled.

On Saturday at 4:05 a.m., Watchung Police got a notification of a pedestrian hit on Route 22 West near Mountain Avenue.

Officers saw a pedestrian on the highway who appeared to have sustained injuries that were consistent with being hit by a motor vehicle.

The driver of the motor vehicle, later identified as Daniel Cole, 32, of Piscataway, fled, said Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald.

The pedestrian, who is being identified as a 56-year-old man from Brooklyn, New York, was pronounced dead at the scene.

An investigation by the Somerset County Collision Analysis Reconstruction Team, along with detectives from the Somerset County Prosecutor's Office Major Crimes Unit and the Watchung Police Department, found that the driver of the vehicle, a Nissan Pathfinder, was Cole.

On Saturday, police found the Nissan Pathfinder at Cole's home with heavy front-end damage consistent with a crash, said McDonald.

Cole was taken to the Watchung Police Department without incident.

He was charged with second -degree knowingly leaving the scene of an accident which resulted in death and third-degree hindering apprehension.

Cole was lodged in the Somerset County Jail pending a court hearing.

The investigation is currently ongoing pending the results of the autopsy from the Northern Regional Medical
Examiner's Office and the Collision Analysis Reconstruction Team's findings.

McDonald thanked the members of the Piscataway Police Department for their help in this investigation.

Anyone with information relating to this investigation is asked to contact the Somerset County Prosecutor's Office at 908-231-7100 or the Watchung Police Department at 908-756-3663 or via the STOPit app.

Information can also be provided through the Somerset County Tip Line at 1-888-577-TIPS (8477) or SCPO.TIPS. All anonymous STOPit reports, and tips will be kept confidential.

Have a news tip? Email alexis.tarrazi@patch.com.