A Call Came Claiming Cop Shot Ex and Her New Boyfriend. A Fellow Officer Allegedly Shirked the Call — and Grabbed Pizza Instead By KC Baker 16

A New Jersey police officer is facing criminal charges for shirking his responsibilities while on duty during a 911 call that turned out to be a double murder-suicide, prosecutors allege.

Sgt. Kevin Bollaro of the Franklin Township Police Department is charged with second-degree official misconduct for knowingly refraining from performing his police duties with purpose to obtain a personal benefit, and tampering with records in connection with his response to calls for help on Aug. 1, 2025, according to a release from the Hunterdon County Prosecutor’s Office.

On Saturday, Aug. 2, 2025, at 12:22 p.m., officers responded to a frantic 911 call about an unconscious female with apparent physical trauma at 39 Upper Kingtown Road in the Pittstown section of Franklin Township, per the release, which cites a criminal complaint.

Arriving officers found two deceased individuals, later identified as Lauren Semanchik, 33, of Pittstown, and Tyler Webb, 29, of Forked River, who were suffering from apparent gunshot wounds from a semiautomatic firearm, the prosecutor’s office said.

Investigators later confirmed that the shooting was a “targeted act” by New Jersey State Police Lieutenant Ricardo Santos, 45, who shot them both before turning the gun on himself at another location.

Santos had been in a relationship with Semanchik, which ended in September 2024, PEOPLE previously reported. At this point he “engaged in continued harassing and controlling behavior,” investigators said at the time.

Semanchik, a veterinarian, and Webb, a volunteer firefighter, had recently started dating at the time of their deaths, according to the prosecutor’s office.

During a “thorough investigation into the circumstances of the double homicide,” the prosecutor’s office learned that on Friday, Aug. 1 — the day before the couple was found dead — at approximately 7:08 PM, someone on 41 Upper Kingtown Road in Pittstown, close to where the killings took place, called 911 to report hearing “gunshots and screaming,” according to the release.

A dispatcher relayed that information to Bollaro, the on-duty officer, “who acknowledged the transmission,” prosecutors allege.

Data from GPS and surveillance footage revealed that “instead of immediately responding to the call for service, Bollaro drove approximately 1.5 miles in the opposite direction of the caller’s location to the TD Bank on Route 31 in Clinton Township, where he conducted a personal ATM transaction,” prosecutors allege.

Five minutes after the first 911 call, a second caller from nearby White Bridge Road reported gunshots and screaming, which was relayed to and acknowledged by Bollaro, “who was continuing his ATM transaction,” prosecutors allege.

Bollaro left the bank and headed toward the locations of the calls “without activating his police vehicle’s emergency lights and sirens,” they allege.

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Five minutes after the second 911 call, a third caller on Upper Kingtown Road reported hearing “gunshots and screaming,” prosecutors allege.

Eight minutes later, Bollaro arrived at 41 Upper Kingtown Road, where investigators believe he spoke to the first caller for approximately 4 to 6 minutes.  

After telling dispatchers he didn’t hear anything in the Upper Kingtown Road area, he headed to White Bridge Road. He was there for less than a minute, according to GPS data, before asking dispatch to clear him from the scene.  

“Further investigation revealed that Bollaro did not speak with either the second or third callers,” prosecutors allege. “Rather, GPS data showed that he traveled partially down White Bridge Road but never stopped to further investigate.”

Bollaro allegedly headed straight to Duke’s Pizzeria & Restaurant in Pittstown, where he remained for approximately 50 minutes, according to GPS data.

He did not return to the locations of the calls again, prosecutors allege, adding that Bollaro’s incident report claims otherwise.

According to prosecutors, he “falsely stated” that he was “unable to make contact with the caller from White Bridge Road.”  

Bollaro also allegedly falsely stated in his report that he “checked the area along Upper Kingtown Road again and was unable to locate the source of the shots,” and that he “cleared the scene after approximately 20 minutes.”  

Bollaro was placed on administrative leave by the Township of Franklin after the incident. He is scheduled to appear in court on Nov. 5. 

In a statement shared with PEOPLE, Bollaro’s attorney, Charles J. Sciarra, wrote, “A women and her friend were tragically killed in a domestic violence incident and we have only wishes for peace and strength for those families … However, nothing Kevin Bollaro did or did not do that day impacted or could have stopped that tragedy in any way.” 

“Evidence will show that there were delays in these 911 calls being made and dispatched,” Sciarra continued, adding that “the evidence will show [Bollaro] canvassed the area thoroughly.”

“Sgt. Kevin Bollaro has faithfully served that community for nearly 25 years and is not guilty of anything related to this horrendous killing. This prosecution is unfortunate,” the statement read.