A driver was arrested after an investigation revealed he was speeding at more than 100 mph on a Jersey City street just seconds before a violent crash that nearly flattened a sedan, leaving three people dead and three others severely injured, according to law enforcement.
Ziyang Wang faces a slew of charges for the early Monday crash on Paterson Plank Road near Congress Street, Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez stated in a press release. The incident occurred before 1 a.m., when two vehicles — a Kia Amanti sedan and a BMW X5 SUV — appeared to have collided head-on.
Video showed the aftermath of the crash, with the smaller Kia completely destroyed and up against a wall in a vertical position. The SUV, which was driven by Wang, was in the middle of the street with its front end completely mangled and crushed, its doors wide open.
The driver of the Kia, 26-year-old Dylan Weidenfeld, was pronounced dead at the scene. He was the only person in the sedan at the time of the crash.
There were four people in the BMW SUV along with Wang, who was driving, law enforcement said. A man and a woman in the backseat died as a result of the crash, investigators said. A third person in the backseat, a 19-year-old woman, was rushed to Jersey City Medical Center where she remains in critical condition, according to officials.
A woman who was in the front seat of the SUV was injured as well, but she is expected to survive.
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Preliminary findings of the investigation showed that the 23-year-old Wang, who lives in Jersey City, was driving more than 100 mph on a stretch of Paterson Plank Road that has seen a string of deadly crashes over the past decade.
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The 23-year-old Wang, who lives in Jersey City, was arrested at the hospital, where he will remain in custody until he is released. He was charged with three counts each of second-degree reckless manslaughter and death by auto, as well as assault by auto.
Attorney information for Wang was not immediately available.
The Hudson County Regional Collision Investigation unit is looking into the details of the heavy crash.
