JACKSON TOWNSHIP, N.J. – A 20-year-old Trenton woman who authorities say had never possessed a valid driver’s license is facing manslaughter and other charges after an horrific Jackson Township parking lot crash left a nine-month-old baby dead and two members of his family hospitalized.
Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer announced Friday that Maria CobonGuzman, 20, of Trenton, was charged with manslaughter, assault by auto and operating a vehicle without ever having been issued a valid license while involved in a fatal crash.
A second woman, Ariadna Lazaro-Flores, 22, of Toms River, was charged with conduct knowingly creating a substantial risk of death to another. Prosecutors allege Lazaro-Flores knew CobonGuzman had never been licensed but permitted her to drive anyway.
The tragedy unfolded shortly before noon on August 28th in the parking lot of the NPGS grocery store on West County Line Road.
According to the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office, CobonGuzman was behind the wheel of a Ford Fusion when the vehicle struck a mother and a baby carriage carrying her two children, a five-year-old girl and nine-month-old boy.
All three victims were quickly transported to the Jersey Shore University Medical Center in nearby Neptune. The infant was later pronounced dead. His mother and five-year-old sister remained hospitalized in stable condition at the time of the prosecutor’s announcement.
Investigators subsequently determined that CobonGuzman had never possessed a valid driver’s license in New Jersey or any other state, authorities said. While the Cape May County prosecutor did not provide any initial additional details, the popular X handle “Libs of TikTok” cited DHS sources and claimed both of the accused women are illegal aliens:
EXCLUSIVE
The driver who kiIIed a 9-month-old baby in NJ while driving without a license is an ILLEGAL ALIEN from Guatemala, DHS confirmed to us.
She was RELEASED into our country by the Biden admin in 2023. She received a FINAL ORDER OF REMOVAL just one month ago.
Maria… pic.twitter.com/cvVIYgKzFG
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) August 30, 2026
The Defendants are current housed in the Ocean County Jail pending detention hearings.
The investigation remains active and involves the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit-Vehicular Homicide Squad and High Tech Crime Squad, along with Jackson and Lakewood police and the Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit.
DHS has yet to issue a statement confirming the women’s immigration status. New Jersey has been a sanctuary state since 2018 by attorney general directive, but in March 2026, Governor Mikie Sherrill signed legislation barring local and state law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration authorities. Three New Jersey counties and multiple municipalities (including three in Ocean County) have passed resolutions calling for the repeal of Sanctuary Statehood this summer. One was Stafford Township where an ICE officer was nearly run over by an illegal alien earlier this year.
