Crime & Safety
Deptford Man Charged in Fatal Crash
One person was killed, and three were injured, in an overnight crash on Route 41.
DEPTFORD–A Deptford man has been charged with vehicular homicide and assault by auto after a fatal crash in neighboring Deptford Township early Saturday morning.
The county prosecutor’s office said Rene Berben, 25, was alone and driving drunk, with an open container of beer in his Ford pickup, when he crashed into a Nissan sedan driven by Steven Kennedy, 29, of Runnemede, on Route 41 near the Kmart.
Kennedy was killed, and his passengers, Elisha Bailey, 52, and Dwayne Pettit, 28, both of Glassboro, were injured and transported to Cooper University Hospital in Camden, where they were treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
Berben, who is serving in the Army, also was injured in the crash and was taken to Cooper. Since he is in the Army, military police were contacted to take custody of him, and his bail has been set at $250,000.
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