E-Bike Crash Kills St. Augustine Prep Wrestler

A popular student and member of the St. Augustine Prep wrestling team died on Tuesday in a crash on his e-bike.

New Jersey State Police say that Chase Sudano, a rising junior at St. Augustine, whose 17th birthday was June 24th, was killed in Southampton Township, Burlington County, when he collided with a UPS truck while riding his e-bike.

NJSP Report on Crash

NJ State Police were called to the intersection of Tranquility Court and North Firelane Road in Southampton Township at 10:45 am on Tuesday for the report of a traffic accident.

The State Police report that a UPS Freightliner box truck was traveling southbound while Chase Sudano was traveling eastward on his e-bike. The front of Sudano's e-bike collided with the right rear of the UPS truck at the intersection.

After the collision, Sudano was ejected from the e-bike. He died from his injuries.

"We are heartbroken by this tragic accident in Southampton Township, NJ," a spokesperson for UPS said.

"Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and loved ones. We are fully cooperating with authorities to understand what happened. Since this is an active investigation, we must refer any additional questions to the authorities."

Sudano Was a Well-Loved South Jersey Wrestler

St. Augustine wrestling coach Bill Ward told NJ.com that his son, Luke, who attends St. Augustine, found out about the crash on a school group chat.

"They all heard something bad had happened," Ward said.

It just stinks. He was a tough kid, but he always had a smile on his face. Just a good kid."

Sudano was a District 29 champion and placed third at Region 8, earning his first trip to the state tournament in Atlantic City last winter. He had 65 career wins in two seasons.

New Jersey's New-e-Bike Law

New Jersey's pending legislation on e-bikes is set to go into effect on July 19.

Riders must be 15 or older and pass a knowledge, vision, and road test before obtaining an e-bike license.

Then the new e-bike riders will obtain a permit and practice riding the e-bike and following the rules for 45 days before obtaining a license.

Every e-bike must be registered and obtain insurance before it can be ridden in the state.

These regulations will require a fair amount of additional time and money for families with kids. Parents who let their children ride without a license, insurance, registration, or a helmet will risk facing charges.