7 charged in fatal attack on garbage truck driver in Santiago

Santiago.- The Dominican Republic’s Public Prosecutor’s Office has requested preventive detention for seven motorcycle taxi drivers accused in the killing of Deivy Carlos Abreu Quezada, a garbage truck driver who was attacked following a chase that ended at the Palace of Justice of Santiago.

The defendants—Adony Antonio Ureña Ventura, Andrés Monclú González, Carlos Andrés Roa Morán, Miguel García Balbuena, Joanfry Joel Núñez, Juan Carlos Soto Ortiz, and Kevin Francisco Metz Cruz—are accused of acting together to pursue, intercept, and fatally attack the victim, who later died at the Presidente Estrella Ureña Hospital. Attorney General Yeni Berenice Reynoso ordered prosecutors to file preliminary murder charges, while chief prosecutor Quirsa Abreu Peña described the act as a coordinated and intentional assault.

According to investigators, the incident began after a minor traffic collision while the victim was driving a garbage truck and escalated into a multi-kilometer chase, with motorcyclists attempting to stop the vehicle. The pursuit ended when the driver sought refuge at the courthouse but was attacked by the group, allegedly with a knife.