FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT:  Jennifer Morrill

PHONE:  (201) 577-6699

EMAIL:  jmorrill@hcpo.org

TWITTER:  @HCPOProsecutor

WEB:  HCPO.org

DATE:  Wednesday, February 19, 2020

CHARGES UPGRADED BY GRAND JURY TO AGGRAVATED MANSLAUGHTER IN COLLISION THAT CAUSED THE DEATH OF NORTH BERGEN WOMAN

Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez has released the following information:

A Union City man has been arrested on the upgraded charge of aggravated manslaughter following a grand jury indictment for his involvement in the May 5, 2019, head-on collision on Paterson Plank Road in Jersey City that caused the death of Adriana Riano, a 32-year-old North Bergen woman.

On February 18, 2020, Jonathan Ortiz-Guananga, age 26, surrendered without incident to members of the Hudson County Regional Collision Investigation Unit and was charged with Aggravated Manslaughter in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:11-4a(1), a first-degree crime.

The grand jury also indicted Ortiz-Guananga on the charges of Death by Auto in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:11-5a, a second-degree crime and Aggravated Assault in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1c(2), a fourth-degree crime for which he had been previously charged and arrested. He was arraigned on all the charges as contained within the indictment yesterday afternoon in Hudson County Superior Court.

He has also been previously charged with violations of Title 39. The violations are Speeding, Driving While Intoxicated, Failure to Maintain a Marked Traffic Lane and Reckless Driving.

Prosecutor Suarez credited the Hudson County Regional Collision Investigation Unit with the investigation and arrest and the Jersey City Police Department for assisting with the investigation.

On Sunday, May 5, 2019, at approximately 7:15 a.m., Jersey City Police Officers were dispatched to Paterson Plank Road in Jersey City, just south of the Congress Street intersection, on a report of a motor vehicle collision. Upon arrival, the responding officers discovered two vehicles were involved in a collision.

The first vehicle was a 2008 Ford Edge operated by Riano containing a 30-year-old male passenger. The second vehicle was a 2015 Dodge Charger operated by Ortiz-Guananga of Union City.

All three individuals were transported by Emergency Medical Services to Jersey City Medical Center. Riano was pronounced dead at approximately 3:15 p.m. Her passenger was treated for non-life threatening injuries. Ortiz-Guananga was treated for injuries related to severe leg trauma.

The above charges are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty. R.P.C.3.6(b)(6).