A Plainfield man has been charged with aggravated manslaughter following his alleged involvement in the death of an Edison woman, Middlesex County Prosecutor Andrew C. Carey said.
Carey said Chiwueze Ebere, 29, of Plainfield, was charged on July 1 with aggravated manslaughter in the death of Wupiju Lin, 70, of Edison.
Lin died after the car in which she was riding was struck by Ebere’s vehicle at the intersection of Route 1 south and Plainfield Avenue, Edison, at 11:34 p.m. June 27.
Ebere’s bail was raised to $150,000 after an investigation by the Edison Police Department and the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s
Office developed information that warranted the filing of the aggravated manslaughter count, according to Carey.
Ebere was initially charged with death by auto and remains in custody at the Middlesex County Adult Corrections Center, North Brunswick.
The investigation is being conducted by Officer Joseph Chonka of the Edison Police Department and Detective Donald Heck of the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office.
Carey said the investigation determined that Ebere, who was driving a 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee, was heading south on Route 1 when he allegedly ran a red light and crashed into a 2002 Acura RL that was being driven by Lin’s husband.
The Acura was on Plainfield Avenue and was crossing Route 1 at the time of the collision.
After the collision, the Acura crashed into a third car, a 2011 Honda Civic, which was stopped on Plainfield Avenue. Two people in that vehicle were not injured, according to authorities.
Lin was taken to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, New Brunswick, where she was pronounced dead at 12:22 a.m. June 28.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call Chonka at 732-248- 7400 or Heck at 732-745-3711.