Apex man accused of fleeing scene of fatal Johnston County crash
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- An Apex man was arrested after allegedly fleeing the scene of a fatal crash.
- Witnesses, surveillance footage and injuries linked Vicencio Pinda to the Oct. 18 crash.
- Pineda posted $100,000 bond this week.
An Apex man is facing multiple charges after he allegedly fled the scene of a Johnston County car accident that killed his passenger.
Vicencio Monroy Pineda, 22, was arrested Wednesday on charges of felony death by vehicle and felony hit-and-run resulting in serious injury or death, court records show. Pineda is accused of leaving the scene of the Oct. 18 crash, which took place just before midnight on Weaver Road outside Kenly, according to a search warrant.
Jesus Mauricio Delgado, 27, of Bear Creek was found dead inside the wrecked Chrysler 300 sedan, court documents state.
Witnesses reported the driver was present after the crash and claimed he was the only person inside the vehicle, according to search warrants. A bystander helped the driver out of the vehicle, and the driver reportedly asked him for a ride home “before taking off on foot” toward a nearby home, the warrants state.
Multiple witnesses saw the driver heading toward U.S. Route 301 as paramedics arrived, according to the search warrants. Eyewitness descriptions of the driver matched what Pineda was seen wearing in surveillance footage from a nearby store prior to the crash, the warrants allege.
Pineda was found severely injured about a quarter- mile from the crash, search warrants state. A responding Kenly Police Department officer recognized Pineda from an encounter at the Big Boys Travel Center on Bagley Road, a little over a mile from the site of the accident, minutes before the incident, a state trooper wrote.
Surveillance footage from the shop showed Pineda and Delgado in the parking lot; their car then sped off when the Kenly police officer arrived to respond to a vandalism call, search warrants state. A shop employee called 911 after seeing Pineda “hanging out and drinking liquor and throwing that bottle” in the parking lot, according to the warrants.
Pineda’s girlfriend came to the crash site after he called her asking for a ride, the warrants state.
“I looked at her phone and could see the name ‘Vicencio’ on the screen,” the police officer wrote. “Trooper Estrada overheard her conversation in Spanish and could hear a male voice on the phone telling her to pick him up.”
At the hospital, Pineda allegedly smelled like alcohol and had red, bloodshot eyes, search warrants state. He reportedly told police he and Delgado had attended a truck show, where he had alcohol, according to the warrants.
About four hours after the crash, Pineda’s blood alcohol concentration registered as a 0.09 — just above the legal limit of 0.08 — on a Breathalyzer test. His blood was taken for testing at 4:41 a.m., search warrants state.
At the time of the crash, Pineda had a pending infraction for speeding in a Sept. 5 incident in Johnston County where he allegedly drove 65 mph in a 45 mph zone, court records show.
Pineda posted $100,000 secured bond Thursday, though he may be detained again by federal officials, as court documents indicate Immigration and Customs Enforcement was notified he may not be in the United States legally. A probable cause hearing is set for 9 a.m. Nov. 13, according to court records.
A Gofundme for Delgado’s funeral expenses had raised $2,760 of its $6,000 goal as of Friday afternoon.
