Driver charged with leaving passenger to die in crash

GAINESVIILE, Va. – A Virginia driver who police say ran off and left one of his passengers to die after crashing an SUV has been charged with involuntary manslaughter.

Twenty-one-year-old Vicente Vides Vasquez of Warrenton has also been charged with hit-and-run causing death and driving without a license.

Prince William County Police say the crash occurred before 3 a.m. Monday on U.S. 15 in Gainesville. They say Vides Vasquez fled the scene after losing control of a Toyota 4-Runner.

A backseat passenger, 38-year-old Jose Romero Maldanado, was thrown from the vehicle when the SUV rolled and pronounced dead at the scene. A front-seat passenger suffered minor injuries.

Deputies in neighbouring Fauquier County found Vides Vasquez Monday afternoon uninjured walking along a roadway.

Police believe alcohol was a factor in the crash.