Man test-driving truck heads to casino and never comes back, New Jersey cops say

A potential customer drove off with a dealership’s truck during a test drive and headed to a casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey, police say.

When police tried pulling over the man driving the 2023 GMC Sierra about 10 miles from the dealership, he didn’t stop, according to the Stafford Township Police Department.

Several hours after the man failed to return from his 11 a.m. test drive, and sometime after he evaded officers from a different department, the dealership in Stafford called police around 8:15 p.m. on Feb. 18, a news release said.

Eventually, the truck was found sitting in the parking garage of the Tropicana casino, about 40 miles away from the dealership, according to police.

Meanwhile, the man was located inside the casino, where he was arrested, police said. Officials didn’t specify what he was doing inside the casino.

Now the man is facing charges including third-degree unlawful taking of means of conveyance in connection with taking off with the truck, and a charge of second-degree eluding in connection with not stopping for Tuckerton Borough Police, authorities said.

The New Jersey State Police Casino Operations Unit helped locate the man inside the casino.

The Tropicana casino is one of Atlantic City’s many casinos.

Julia Marnin

McClatchy DC

Julia Marnin covers courts for McClatchy News, writing about criminal and civil affairs, including cases involving policing, corrections, civil liberties, fraud, and abuses of power. As a reporter on McClatchy’s National Real-Time Team, she’s also covered the COVID-19 pandemic and a variety of other topics since joining in 2021, following a fellowship with Newsweek. Born in Biloxi, Mississippi, she was raised in South Jersey and is now based in New York State.