Driver Indicted For Manslaughter In Crash That Killed 2 MOCO Women

ROCKVILLE, MD — A Howard County man has been indicted by a grand jury on charges related to a 2023 crash that killed two Montgomery County women, authorities said Wednesday.

Jean Pierre Velasco, 20, of Elkridge, appeared in Montgomery County Circuit Court on July 26, 2024, and was indicted on two counts of negligent manslaughter by vehicle, two counts of homicide by vehicle while under the influence of alcohol and two counts of homicide by vehicle while under the influence of alcohol per se.

About 4 a.m. on March 4, 2023, police and fire rescue personnel responded to a single-vehicle crash involving a 2012 Infiniti G37 on Montrose Road at the intersection of Hitching Post Lane in Rockville. The car had four occupants in it when it crashed into a utility pole on Montrose Road, a police news release said.

The driver of the Infiniti — later determined to be Velasco — lost control of the vehicle, which struck the center median, left the roadway, hit a fire hydrant, electrical control box and several other objects, before crashing into the utility pole, police said.

Leslie Kristin Ventura, 19, of Germantown was pronounced dead at the scene. A second passenger, Kailey Briana Vigil, 19, of Rockville, was taken to an area hospital, where she died from her injuries on March 6, 2023.

Investigators determined that Velasco was responsible for the collision.

He was released on an unsecured personal bond.