Prior to Fatal Crash, Driver Streamed Video of Himself Drinking, Said He Drives Better When Drunk
Facebook Camilo Morejon
The longneck bottle of Corona is passed from person to person, its contents briefly spilling from the lips of one of them, as 47-year-old Camilo Morejon appears to be driving himself and three others in a Honda Accord just before 8 a.m. Sunday on Farm-to-Market Road 529 in greater Houston.
In Spanish, Morejon tells his fellow passengers that he drives better when he drinks.
Recorded via Facebook Live, the video is the very last thing posted on Morejon's Facebook page.
Moments after it was uploaded, according to the Harris County Sheriff's Office, the westbound Honda smashed into an eastbound Ford F-150 pickup that was attempting a turn.
The three passengers inside the Honda, two of whom were riding without wearing a seatbelt, died at the scene from their injuries.
One of those killed was Morejon's girlfriend, according to prosecutors, reports Houston TV station KPRC.
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Morejon and the driver of the pickup, who also was not wearing a seatbelt and was ejected in the crash, both were taken to hospitals in critical condition.
The Harris County District Attorney has since charged Morejon with three counts of intoxication manslaughter and one count of intoxication assault, which could be upgraded if the pickup driver dies.
"Preliminary investigation indicates speed and alcohol/drugs are a factor in this collision," the sheriff's office said in a news release.
The crash occurred around 7:53 a.m., according to the sheriff's office. The time stamp on the video was six minutes earlier, at 7:47 a.m.
“It’s very rare that we see actions of the defendant that close in time to a horrific crash like that but it’s what happens, it’s what goes on, moments before lives are lost,” said Sean Teare, chief of the Harris County District Attorney's Office Vehicular Crimes Division, reports KPRC.
“We believe there are probably three or four bars that are around the area we believe they were, and we are in the process today of going to those locations determining which ones were contributing factors to this crash,” Teare said Tuesday.
The victims' names were not released, nor was an attorney for Morejon immediately identified. He remains hospitalized, PEOPLE confirms.
The charges against him carry a maximum penalty of 80 years in prison if convicted.
