Man in fatal Las Vegas crash fled to parents’ home, warrant says

Jonathan Mora, 23, came home about midnight to wash off the blood.

He told his parents that he had been in a crash and left behind his 10-year-old nephew, Zion Jimenez, a newly released arrest warrant said. Then he left his parents’ home. He is still at large, court and jail records show.

Prosecutors charged Mora with murder last week following the Sept. 15 crash that killed Zion and injured two others, according to jail and court records. Police previously identified Mora and Zion as relatives, but the arrest warrant clarifies that Zion was his nephew.

The warrant states that Mora was driving a 2016 Nissan Altima at 110 mph two seconds before slamming into the back of a 2015 Toyota Camry about 11:30 p.m. near East Vegas Valley Drive and South Mountain Vista Street.

The posted speed limit in the residential neighborhood is 35 mph, the warrant states.

“This act was unjustifiable and resulted in a crash which sent three people to the hospital,” a detective wrote in the warrant.

Witnesses to the crash pulled Zion and a 20-year-old backseat passenger from the Nissan, which caught fire. Zion was hospitalized at Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center with life-threatening injuries. He died Sept. 21 of blunt force injuries to the head and neck, the Clark County coroner’s office said.

The 20-year-old and the Toyota driver were hospitalized with serious injuries.

The crash sent the Toyota spinning for 217 feet and the Nissan spinning for 126 feet, the warrant states.

Mora, the 20-year-old man and Zion, the front passenger, were not wearing seat belts, according to the warrant.

Witnesses reported hearing Mora scream “my nephew, my nephew” before he fled, the warrant states.

A crime scene analyst noted blood on the driver’s airbag and a bloody handprint from the block wall that Mora was seen jumping over as he fled.

In addition to the murder charge, Mora faces three charges each of reckless driving resulting in death or substantial bodily harm and failing to stop at the scene of a crash as well as a charge of child abuse.

Data collected from the two cars clocked the Nissan at 110 mph and the Toyota at 16 mph before the crash, the warrant said.

A GoFundMe page set up in Zion’s name had collected more than $3,000 as of Monday evening.

Police urged anybody with information to call Metro crash investigators at 702-828-4060 or Crime Stoppers at 702-385-5555 to remain anonymous.

Contact Mike Shoro at mshoro@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5290. Follow @mike_shoro on Twitter.