Jeep

New Jersey Man Gets 18 Years in Street Brawl Stabbing

A Totowa man who fatally stabbed a teenager during a street brawl three years ago has been sentenced to 18 years in state prison.

Jonathan Lafontaine had pleaded guilty in April to aggravated manslaughter in the death of 18-year-old Brian Topoleski.

Passaic County prosecutors say the July 2013 stabbing occurred after a case of mistaken identity involving two groups of friends quickly turned violent.

Lafontaine was in a Jeep that pulled up behind another vehicle Topoleski was riding in. Passengers in the Jeep thought they recognized the people in the other vehicle and shouted out to them, but they soon realized they didn't know the group.

After members of the two groups exchanged angry words, the second vehicle followed the Jeep to a Little Falls home where the stabbing occurred.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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