ALLENTOWN, Pa. — An Allentown man is facing a slew of charges, including homicide and manslaughter, in connection with a crash that killed a 20-year-old city resident last year in Bethlehem.
Jose Vladimir Jerez, 24, was charged Wednesday with causing an accident involving death, homicide by vehicle, involuntary manslaughter, reckless endangerment and receiving stolen property, as well as summary charges, according to the Lehigh County District Attorney's Office.
Bail was set at $100,000 for Jerez, who already was in Lehigh County Jail, authorities said in a news release.
Bethlehem police were called about 6:50 p.m. Oct. 13 to the 700 block of Central Boulevard, where a car struck a utility pole and sustained severe damage.
Witnesses reported they saw Jerez driving erratically as he tried to pass another car, then lose control of the vehicle and crash into a utility pole, the district attorney’s office said in the release.
Lehigh County District Attorney's office news release
But officers were unable to locate a driver or passengers until a short time later, when a man sought treatment at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Muhlenberg for injuries that appeared to be from a vehicle crash, authorities said last year.
Ezequiel Hernandez-Cartagena, who witnesses said was a passenger in Jerez's car, died less than 90 minutes after the crash.
The witnesses reported they saw Jerez driving erratically as he tried to pass another car, then lose control of the vehicle and crash into a utility pole, the district attorney’s office said in the release.
Jerez fled the area while Hernandez-Cartagena “yelled for help and beeped the horn”; he was taken to the hospital by witnesses.
The car was registered to a Bethlehem woman who was not involved in the crash, according to the district attorney’s office.
A preliminary hearing for Jerez is scheduled for 2 p.m. July 22.