The Las Vegas community was recently reminded of the fragility of life as the Clark County Coroner's Office confirmed the death of a third person, 25-year-old Vanessa Lainez Vasquez, resulting from a harrowing 12-car collision last month. The incident that took place on W. Cheyenne Avenue near N. Jones Blvd, has now taken three lives, with 19-year-old Jose Gutierrez facing serious legal charges in connection with the crash, according to News3LV.
After the violent impact led to the deaths of the Infiniti's passenger and a 38-year-old male driver at the scene, authorities at the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department labeled Gutierrez's high velocity as a significant factor; he failed to decelerate for vehicles stopped at a red light, setting forth a chain of destruction as shared by Hoodline. In the immediate aftermath, several other injured individuals were identified including Sharundah Robertson, Shawn Collins, and Floyd Hilliard, while others like Simon Fortunato and Stephanie Carrillo fortunately escaped physical harm.
Details from the initial crash report noted that Gutierrez's passenger, Adilene Duran-Rincon, who was 11 weeks pregnant, and another driver, Edward Garcia, were the first two victims whose lives were cut short by the incident, as articulated in an article by FOX5 Vegas. Gutierrez is currently facing two charges of open murder, along with one count of attempted murder, as the District Attorney's office believes the crash was intentional. The suspect is due back in court on Tuesday.
