Drunk, speeding friend with fake ID killed high school grad, investigators say
WEST WINDSOR — The driver of a Tesla that slammed into a tree, killing his 18-year-old passenger, had a blood alcohol level of 0.125 and driving at nearly 80 mph, according to the Mercer County Prosecutor's Office.
Daniel Haas, 18, of West Windsor, and member of the Class of 2024 at Notre Dame High School in Lawrence, died several days after the crash on Aug. 20.
The Tesla Y went off Lanwin Boulevard in the area of Providence Drive and into a tree, causing "significant intrusion" into the passenger side, according to acting Mercer County Prosecutor Theresa L. Hilton.
Haas was set to attend Fairfield University. He played football, lacrosse and golf, according to the school.
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One of four deaths involving NJ teens
Hilton said driver Rehan Jahangir, 18, of West Windsor, also had a fraudulent New Jersey driver’s license with an altered date of birth.
Jahangir was charged Monday at a rehabilitation center in New Brunswick with first-degree aggravated manslaughter, second-degree vehicular homicide (death by auto), third-degree vehicular homicide (strict liability) and fourth-degree possession of a false government document.
Jahangir was a member of the West Winsdor-Plainsboro High School North Class of 2024. He was a member of the wrestling and boys lacrosse teams.
Haas' death was one of four deaths involving New Jersey young adults at the end of August.
- North Hunterdon High School student Sophia Detorres, 16, died Aug. 22 in a three-vehicle crash at Hogback (Route 617) and Lowers Lansdown roads in Franklin (Hunterdon) on the first day of classes.
- Zeina Mahafzah, 18, of Wayne, who was about to start classes at the School of Arts and Sciences at Rutgers-Newark, was killed Aug. 24 when she was struck by the propeller of a boat she was trying to board.
- Noelia Gomez, 18, of Clark, was struck by a motorcycle while she was crossing a street on the campus of the University of Delaware in Newark Aug. 27 as she was about to begin her freshman year. Brian Biddle, 27, of Newark sped through a red light, hitting Gomez and four other pedestrians before being thrown from a motorcycle, according to police. He was charged with second-degree murder.
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