In the early morning hours of September 14, 2024, the life of 42-year-old Anthony Hill, a devoted husband and father from Eatontown, New Jersey, was tragically cut short in the parking lot of the Holly Hill Motel in Hazlet. A longtime taxi driver for the Yellow Car Company, Hill was found with multiple gunshot wounds near a dumpster on the motel property after police responded to an emergency call around 7:18 a.m. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Hill, known affectionately as 'Ant,' had been a familiar and friendly face to many in the Red Bank area for 18 years, remembered for his kind heart and willingness to help others.
The investigation into the male victim's death quickly pointed to a violent and brazen act. Surveillance footage from the motel captured the harrowing moments at approximately 5:12 a.m. when Hill's taxi entered the parking lot. A puff of smoke, believed to be from the gunshots, was seen coming from the vehicle.
The taxi then rolled slowly before colliding with a dumpster. A woman was seen exiting the cab and fleeing the area. The grim details that emerged from court documents painted a brutal picture: after being shot, Hill was pulled from his taxi, and the assailant then got into the driver's seat and ran him over.
Within days, law enforcement identified a suspect, 25-year-old Gaetano S. Scannavino of Brooklyn, New York. He was apprehended in Brooklyn on September 19, 2024, by the New York City Police Department. Scannavino and a female companion had reportedly called for a taxi to the motel where the deadly encounter took place. The woman who fled the scene was later located and confirmed to authorities that she was with Scannavino before and during the killing, stating she heard three gunshots as they pulled into the motel. Hill's taxi was discovered in Brooklyn, with evidence suggesting an attempt had been made to set it on fire. Bullet holes were found in the driver's seat headrest and the windshield. Scannavino has since been charged with first-degree murder, carjacking, and two weapons offenses and is awaiting extradition to New Jersey.
