The mother was with her 5-year-old daughter and 9-month-old son in a New Jersey grocery store parking lot when they were struck by a Ford Fusion, according to police
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NEED TO KNOW
- A 9-month-old baby boy died after being struck by a car in a New Jersey grocery store parking lot
- Police said a mother was pushing a stroller with her 5-year-old daughter and 9-month-old son when they were struck by a Ford Fusion
- The driver, Maria CobonGuzman, allegedly had never possessed a valid driver’s license in any state, according to authorities
Two people have been charged after a car struck a mother pushing a stroller in a New Jersey grocery store parking lot, killing a 9-month-old baby.
According to the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office, two women — identified as Maria CobonGuzman, 20, and Ariadna Lazaro-Flores, 22 — were arrested and charged following the fatal incident on Friday, August 28.
Police in Jackson Township were called to an NPGS grocery store just before 12 p.m. local time on Friday after receiving a report of a crash involving pedestrians.
Responding officers discovered that a mother and her two children, a 5-year-old girl and a 9-month-old boy, had been struck by a Ford Fusion in the store’s parking lot. They were quickly transported to an area hospital, where the infant was pronounced dead.
The mother and her 5-year-old daughter remain hospitalized in stable condition, police said.
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Investigators learned that the driver of the Fusion, CobonGuzman, allegedly “did not possess, nor had she ever possessed, a valid driver’s license in [New Jersey] or any other state,” per the prosecutor’s office.
“Continuing investigation further revealed that Lazaro-Flores was aware of that fact, but nevertheless permitted CobonGuzman to operate the motor vehicle,” the prosecutor’s office alleged.
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CobonGuzman, of Trenton, N.J., and Lazaro-Flores, of Toms River, N.J., were taken into custody and transported to the Ocean County Jail, where they are currently being held pending a hearing.
CobonGuzman has been charged with manslaughter, operating a motor vehicle without ever having possessed a valid driver’s license while involved in a fatal motor vehicle crash, and two counts of assault by auto. Lazaro-Flores has been charged with knowingly engaging in conduct creating a substantial risk of death to another.
The prosecutor’s office said the crash is still under investigation by its vehicular homicide squad and the high-tech crime squad, as well as the Jackson Township Police Department, the Lakewood Township Police Department and the Ocean County Sheriff’s Office crime scene investigation unit.
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