A warrant has been issued for a truck driver that skipped out on a court date for a wreck that happened in New Jersey last year.
63-year-old Texas trucker Eduardo E. Villasenor-Aguilar failed to appear for his virtual pre-trial hearing in March. A bench warrant has since been issued for his arrest, a court official announced on Thursday, May 26th. Villasenor-Aguilar’s public defender has not responded to requests for comment on the case.
According to NJ News, Villasenor-Aguilar was driving south on Interstate 295 in Carneys Point Township on the afternoon of May 30th, 2020 when he veered onto the shoulder of the interstate, fatally striking two people working on a disabled car.
Desiree Pulliam, 29, of New Castle, Delaware, and Heber Barreiro-Lopez, 30, of Philadelphia, were pronounced dead at the scene. When questioned, Villasenor-Aguilar told police that he had fallen asleep at the wheel and was taken into custody.
“He stated that ‘Just for a second, I closed my eyes and when I opened my eyes I was on the cars,’” Salem County Assistant Prosecutor David M. Galemba said during a 2020 hearing. “He said he closed his eyes because he was tired.” The Prosecutor also said that Villasenor-Aguilar had described himself as ‘pushing himself to make a delivery on time’ at the time of the wreck.
Villasenor-Aguilar was released from jail pending trial in 2020. Superior Court Judge M. Christine Allen-Jackson cited his age, health condition, and increased risk for contracting COVID-19 as reasons for his release. Villasenor-Aguilar is diabetic according to his public defender.
Prosecutors described Villasenor-Aguilar as a flight risk based on his potentially lengthy prison sentence and the fact that he has no personal ties to New Jersey. Prosecutors also cited an Arizona failure to appear warrant from 2007 that was not resolved until eight years later.