New Jersey driver who killed 3 in alleged drug-fueled gas station crash has history of drug arrests: report

Jason Vanderee, 29, was charged Tuesday after he plowed his car into a New Jersey gas station and killed three people, officials said. (Passaic County Prosecutor's Office)

A New Jersey driver who plowed into a gas station while he was allegedly overdosing on drugs, killing a teen and two others on Tuesday, reportedly has a history of reckless driving and drug-related charges.

Jason Vanderee, 29, was charged Tuesday with aggravated manslaughter, death by auto and death by auto while driving intoxicated within 1,000 feet of school property, NJ.com reported. He also faces a slew of drug-related charges.

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Vanderee was driving around 8:45 a.m. Tuesday when he plowed his vehicle into a Delta gas station in Wayne at “an excessive speed.” Video obtained by PIX11 showed the vehicle allegedly driven by Vanderee ripping off the roof of a car, killing Jon Warbeck, 50, and his 17-year-old son. A gas station attendant, Lovedeep Fatra, 22, was also killed.

The 29-year-old, who survived the crash, was reportedly overdosing on opioids and paramedics revived him with naloxone at the scene, PIX11 reported.

Vanderee has a history of drug abuse and was previously arrested for reckless driving and DUI, leading to a license suspension.

He was charged in 2016 with DWI, failing to turn drugs over to police, operating a motor vehicle in possession of narcotics, possession of a hypodermic syringe and careless driving likely to endanger person or property, NJ.com reported. He pleaded guilty to the DWI charge and had his license suspended for seven months.

The other charges were dismissed.

He was also charged in 2015 with careless driving and paid a $539 fine. In 2018, records showed Vanderee was issued a citation for driving the wrong way on a one-way street.

Vanderee was open about his battle with drug addiction on social media. In August 2017, he posted on his Facebook page that he was celebrating 100 days sober. His license was also reinstated two months later.

Vanderee’s former girlfriend also told NJ.com that the 29-year-old was about eight months sober prior to the crash.

“He never had issues getting sober,” she told the news site Wednesday. “He had trouble staying sober.”