Man was on meth when he caused fatal Hillsborough crash, troopers say

RIVERVIEW ― A 31-year-old man was impaired by methamphetamines when troopers said he caused a crash on Interstate 75 that killed a woman early Friday.

Jeremy Guerrero was arrested on charges of DUI manslaughter and driving with a license suspended or revoked involving death.

The incident took place at about 5:48 a.m. on Interstate 75, south of Big Bend Road. Guerrero was driving a 2017 Toyota Corolla south in the inside lane of I-75 at a high rate of speed, according to the Highway Patrol.

Suddenly Guerrero realized there was a Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office patrol cruiser in the inside lane ahead of him. Guerrero started to “aggressively brake” so that he wouldn’t pass the cruiser, troopers said.

Then Guerrero lost control and the Corolla entered the outside southbound lane, where it struck the left side of a 2009 Dodge Van driven by Maria Delourdes Perez, 57, of Ruskin.

Both vehicles entered the west shoulder. The Corolla rolled over and struck several trees on the side of the interstate. The Dodge struck a tree head-on.

Delourdes Perez was taken to Blake Medical Center in Bradenton for medical treatment, where she was pronounced dead later that day. She was wearing her seat belt, troopers said.

Guerrero and his passenger, Mary Kathryn Sonzogni, 31, suffered minor injuries but were not taken to a hospital. Neither was wearing their seat belt at the time.

The Highway Patrol said Guerrero, of Ruskin, was under the influence of drugs at the time of the crash. He was booked into the Hillsborough County jail.