HOLBROOK, MASS. (WHDH) - A man accused of being high and drunk behind the wheel when the car he was driving at more than 100 mph veered off the road and slammed through the roof of a house in Holbrook last week, killing his 20-year-old girlfriend, has been ordered held on $50,000 bail.
Hector DeJesus, 20, was arrested at his home Monday by officers investigating the wild crash that left his girlfriend, Nicole Ricci, dead, prosecutors said.
He was later arraigned in Quincy District Court on charges including manslaughter while operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of liquor, operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of drugs (marijuana) causing serious bodily injury, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, and malicious destruction of property valued over $1,200.
Officers responding to the area of Abington Avenue about 4:30 a.m. on Nov. 11 found a car that was lodged in the roof of a home, police said. An investigation determined DeJesus was traveling westbound on Route 139 at 130 mph when he sideswiped a telephone pole, causing the vehicle to go airborne.
Ricci was extricated from the vehicle and taken to an area hospital, where she was pronounced dead. DeJesus was ejected from the vehicle and hospitalized with serious injuries.
A third person in the vehicle told police that DeJesus “cheered” as he reached 130 mph, according to prosecutor Allison Hynes.
“He stated that as they were driving down Abington Avenue in Holbrook, the defendant began to accelerate his motor vehicle, and at one point, he cheered 130 mph and appeared to be celebrating,” she told the court.
Ricci’s uncle, George Paluzzi, told 7News that DeJesus had been at family gatherings, seemed quiet and never set off any alarms.
“A poor decision was made and it was at the expense and cost of my niece’s life,” he said. “She was sweet and I’m sure she’s looking down and really upset that anybody is in this situation.”
If convicted, DeJesus faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in state prison.
No one in the home was injured by the crash.
Police say DeJesus had been drinking and was driving 130 mph when he crashed his car into a house in Holbrook last week, killing Ricci.#7News
— Byron Barnett (@Byron_Barnett) November 19, 2018
19 y/o Hector DeJesus of Holbrook held on $50,000 cash bail, charged with manslaughter in death of his girlfriend, 20y/o Nicole Ricci of Stoughton.#7News
— Byron Barnett (@Byron_Barnett) November 19, 2018
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