RIDGEFIELD PARK, N.J. — A 24-year-old Ridgefield Park man has been charged with second-degree aggravated assault after investigators determined he deliberately crossed into oncoming traffic and caused a serious crash Wednesday morning, authorities said.
Patrick J. McArdle was driving a Honda Civic northbound on Bergen Turnpike when he veered over the double-yellow line and struck a southbound Toyota Corolla around 9:41 a.m., according to the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office. Both McArdle and the other driver — an 84-year-old man — were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.
Following a joint investigation by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit and the Ridgefield Park Police Department, authorities concluded McArdle intentionally caused the collision. Investigators from the Bergen County Fatal Accident Task Force also responded to the scene.
McArdle was charged with second-degree aggravated assault resulting in serious bodily injury under N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1b(1) and was issued several motor vehicle summonses. He remains in police custody at the hospital, pending a court appearance in Bergen County Superior Court in Hackensack.
Investigation coordinated across multiple law enforcement agencies
Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella thanked the Ridgefield Park Police Department, as well as officers from Fairview, Ho-Ho-Kus, Ramsey, and the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office for assisting in the investigation.