Man Pleads Guilty In 2013 Fatal Accident In Lawrence Township

LAWRENCE TOWNSHIP, NJ — A Hamilton Township man has pleaded guilty to three counts of second-degree death by auto in connection with an accident that resulted in three deaths in Lawrence Township in 2013, Mercer County Spokesperson Casey DeBlasio said Tuesday afternoon.

Luis Delcid-Cardona pleaded guilty to the charges on March 1. Under the terms of the plea agreement, he will be sentenced to five years in prison on each count, to run concurrent. He must serve 85 percent of his sentence before becoming eligible for parole.

He will face deportation upon his release because he is an undocumented immigrant.

Delcid-Cardona lost control of his 2001 Volkswagen GTS on I-95 southbound (toward Pennsylvania—at the transition from I-295 northbound) shortly after 1 a.m. on Thursday, Dec. 12, 2013.

The vehicle went over a curb that divides the on-ramp lanes from Rt.1, then struck the rear of a tractor-trailer that had pulled onto the shoulder of the ramp.

The two rear seat passengers, Samantha Belliveau, 18, of Hamilton and Nicole Rodrigues, 20, of Yardville were both ejected from the car and died at the scene.

The front seat passenger, Jonathan Rivas, 19, of Princeton was transported to Capital Health Regional Hospital, where he later succumbed to serious head injuries.

Delcid-Cardona was also injured, but fled the scene following the crash, and was located and arrested a short time later at a home in Lawrence, police said.

Sentencing is scheduled for May 16.

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