A man, identified as 30-year-old Jason Arvin Velasquez, was arrested after a series of violent carjackings and a crash on I-45 in Houston on Friday that left one woman dead. The chaos began with a multi-car pileup at the intersection of I-45 and Broadway, during which Velasquez allegedly sped onto the northbound access road, striking multiple vehicles; one witness said, "He sped up and clipped my car a little bit, not bad," according to ABC13.
Velasquez reportedly brandished a firearm, fired into the air, and carjacked two vehicles while fleeing, endangering multiple people along the route toward downtown Houston. Another witness described the encounter, saying, "He pulled out a knife and tried to cut me, and he pulled out a gun and tried to shoot," as reported by ABC13.
The spree ended when a Precinct 1 constable stopped Velasquez as he tried a third carjacking near downtown. He was arrested and charged with a felony count of intoxicated manslaughter with a vehicle and failure to stop and render aid. An earlier crash killed a woman who had just dropped off her husband at work. Houston Police Department Assistant Chief Adrian Rodriguez said the investigation is ongoing and asked anyone with information to come forward, as per KHOU.
