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Three killed in separate crashes
Fatal crash art

Three separate car crashes in the Ceres and Hughson areas claimed the lives of three persons during a week’s time.

The first deadly crash occurred Sunday morning, Sept. 4 when a Turlock driver was killed and a Ceres man seriously injured when their vehicles collided on Keyes Road. Killed was Christopher Desousa, 33, of Turlock.

Desousa was driving a 2008 Mazda 3 at a high rate of speed eastbound on Keyes Road east of Pioneer Road around 1 a.m. The Mazda veered into the oncoming lane and struck the front of a westbound 2017 Chevrolet Silverado driven by Richard John Agresti, 31, of Ceres. Desousa was ejected as the Silverado went into an orchard, facing in a southeasterly direction. The Mazda came to a rest on the south shoulder of Keyes Road.

Desousa sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene. It’s unknown if he was wearing a seat belt.

Agresti sustained major injuries from the crash and was rushed to a local hospital.

The CHP was unable to determine if drugs or alcohol played a factor in the collision.

Whitmore Ave. fatality

On Thursday afternoon a 21-year-old Denair man was killed in a three-vehicle collision on Whitmore Avenue, east of Waring Road in the Hughson area.

Killed in the 3:30 p.m. collision was Andres Jimenez, 21, of Denair.

Jimenez man was driving a 2014 Nissan sedan eastbound on Whitmore Avenue, just east of Waring Road when his car drifted into the oncoming lane where it struck a 2006 Ford SUV driven by Avelino Araiza, 47, of La Grange. The impact sent the Nissan spinning in a clockwise direction, directly into the path of a westbound 2014 Toyota sedan driven by Monica Acevedo, 47, of Hughson, striking it. 

Jimenez wasn’t wearing a seat belt, the California Highway Patrol reported.

Acevedo sustained major injuries from the crash and was rushed to Doctors Medical Center but Araiza was not injured.

It’s currently unknown if drugs or alcohol factored in the collision and the investigation is ongoing.

Highway 99 death

A 27-year-old Ceres pedestrian was killed in a Saturday afternoon crash on Highway 99 south of the Hatch Road overpass.

Shaun Neuman was reportedly standing along the shoulder of the northbound lanes at approximately 4:13 p.m. when he suddenly darted in front of a 2018 Freightliner driven by William Hutton, 73, of Stockton, in the number 3 lane. Hutton was unable to avert Neuman who was fatally struck at approximately 55 mph.

Hutton and his passenger, Brenda Cartier, 67, of Stockton, were not injured.

Investigating California Highway Patrol officers were unable to determine if the victim was under the influence of drugs or alcohol.