Officer honored for heroism
BY REBECCA MORTON Staff Writer

PHOTO COURTESY OF MARLBORO POLICE DEPARTMENT Marlboro Mayor Jonathan Hornik (r) presents Marlboro Police Officer Gerald Arminio with the Marlboro Police Department's Lifesaving Award. On May 21, Arminio pulled a woman who had been involved in a motor vehicle accident from a minivan that was lying on its side under live utility wires.

MARLBORO - In recognition of his heroic rescue of a woman from a burning vehicle, Marlboro Police Officer Gerald Arminio has been presented with the Marlboro Police Department's Lifesaving Award.

Arminio was honored during the Township Council's July 17 meeting, receiving recognition from municipal officials and from the state Legislature. Assemblyman Declan O'Scanlon Jr. (R-Monmouth and Mercer) presented Arminio with a joint resolution from the Senate and Assembly.

In the early hours of May 21, Arminio was dispatched to a call of an overturned vehicle on Route 520 near Campus Drive. What Arminio found upon arriving at the scene was a Chrysler minivan lying on its side after it had struck a utility pole. Upon approaching the vehicle, the officer observed that the van was on fire and the driver was stuck inside.

According to police, Arminio broke the driver's-side window and pulled Erendira Reyes, 34, of Perth Amboy, from the car. Minutes later, wires from the damaged utility pole fell onto the van and engulfed it in flames.

Last week Arminio's family members, friends and fellow officers cheered the officer during the award presentation.

O'Scanlon said it was an honor to be in Marlboro to present the officer with an award recognizing his heroism.

"These folks (police officers) every minute of every day are ready to be there to protect us," the assemblyman said.

"Your acts were overwhelming," Mayor Jonathan Hornik told Arminio as he presented the officer with an award from the township and with the police department's Lifesaving Award.