The driver was identified as Christopher Johnson, 29, of Trenton, on Friday morning by Hillside police.
HILLSIDE -- Police have identified the man they say was driving a stolen pickup and died when the vehicle crashed during a police pursuit early Thursday morning.
A man who stole a pickup truck in Hazlet is dead after a crash during a police pursuit, Hillside police said. (NJ Advance Media file photo)The driver was identified as Christopher Johnson, 29, of Trenton, on Friday morning by Hillside police.
According to police, Hillside officers were monitoring traffic on Route 22 West around 12:30 a.m. when a blue 2009 GMC Sierra pickup truck passed at a high rate of speed.
Officers pulled over Johnson and approached the vehicle, then asked him to pull into a safer location in a nearby parking lot, police said.
According to police, Johnson appeared willing to comply, but then sped off, forcing the officers to pursue him.
The officers then learned the pickup was stolen out of Hazlet, police said. Hazlet police did not immediately return a call requesting information on the theft.
RELATED: Driver in stolen pickup dead after pursuit, crash, Hillside police say
Johnson led police down Route 22 west, onto Vauxhall Road in Union, onto the Garden State Parkway northbound, and then onto Route 78 east, police said.
According to police, on Route 78 Johnson attempted to take exit 54 (Hillside sub-exit), but failed to negotiate the turn due to the pickup's high speed.
Police said Johnson crashed into the embankment between the Hilliside and Irvington sub-exits and was ejected from the vehicle. He was then transported to University Hospital in Newark where he immediately underwent surgery but was later pronounced dead, police said.
Police said the sole passenger in the pickup - Tiereka Barr, 26, of Trenton - was wearing his seatbelt and uninjured, but arrested for receiving stolen property. He is being held on a warrant from Doylestown, Pennsylvania at Hillside police headquarters, they said.
This incident is still under investigation.
Jessica Remo may be reached at jremo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @JessicaRemoNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
