Driver Charged In Connection With Fatal North Bergen Crash

This week the Hudson County Regional Collision Investigation Unit arrested a driver involved in a fatal crash that occurred in North Bergen on Saturday, May 30, 2026.

According to Hudson County Prosecutor Wayne Mello, 21-year old Mahmoud Khalifa of Clifton is charged with Aggravated Manslaughter; Death by Auto; five counts of Assault by Auto; and Causing Death While Driving Suspended.  He was arrested at the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office in Secaucus and transported to the Hudson County Correctional Facility pending his first court appearance.

Mello say that shortly after 4:30 a.m. on Saturday, May 30, 2026, the North Bergen Police Department was notified of a multi-vehicle crash in the area of Tonnelle Avenue and 70th Street. Responding officers located four damaged vehicles – a tractor trailer, an Alfa Romeo Giulia, a Hyundai Tucson, and a BMW 435i driven by the defendant. The driver of the Hyundai Tuscan – later identified as Karen Velasquez-Ochoa, age 34, of North Bergen – was found unresponsive in the vehicle and pronounced deceased. Four occupants of the Alfa Romeo and a passenger in the defendant’s car were treated for injuries.

The above charges are merely accusations and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.