A Red Bank man has been sentenced to a combined 20 years in New Jersey State Prison for a horrific 2025 crash in Lakewood that claimed the lives of a 42-year-old woman and an 11-year-old girl.

Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer announced that Raul Luna-Perez, 43, was sentenced Friday by Superior Court Judge Guy P. Ryan to 10 years in state prison on each of two counts of Aggravated Manslaughter. The sentences will run consecutively and are subject to the No Early Release Act, requiring Luna-Perez to serve at least 85% of the sentence before becoming eligible for parole.

He was also sentenced to 18 months in prison for Assault by Auto, which will run concurrently. Luna-Perez pleaded guilty to the charges in June.

The charges stem from a devastating crash shortly after 11:20 p.m. on July 26, 2025, at Cross Street and Hearthstone Drive in Lakewood.

As Lakewood Alerts reported at the time, Luna-Perez was driving a Dodge Durango eastbound on Cross Street when investigators say he crossed the double-yellow line into oncoming traffic and slammed head-on into a Nissan Sentra.

The Nissan’s driver, Maria Pleitez, 42, of Lakewood, was pronounced dead at the scene. An 11-year-old girl seated in the front passenger seat was rushed to Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus, where she succumbed to her injuries.

A second 11-year-old girl seated in the rear of the Nissan was transported to Jersey Shore University Medical Center and later released. A passenger in Luna-Perez’s vehicle was also hospitalized with minor injuries.

Authorities said first responders observed signs that Luna-Perez was under the influence. A court-authorized blood draw later showed his blood alcohol concentration was at least .19 — more than twice New Jersey’s legal limit of .08 — and cocaine metabolites were also detected in his system.

A toxicology report concluded that Luna-Perez was under the influence of both alcohol and cocaine at the time of the crash.

Investigators further determined that Luna-Perez was accelerating at approximately 60 mph and had crossed the double-yellow line to pass four vehicles before colliding with the Nissan.

Luna-Perez was initially charged with two counts of Vehicular Homicide and Assault by Auto. He was later released on strict home detention before being transferred into federal custody on an ICE detainer.

As the investigation continued, prosecutors upgraded the charges to two counts of Aggravated Manslaughter and two counts of Strict Liability Vehicular Homicide.

Detectives later took Luna-Perez into custody at an ICE detention facility in Elizabeth, New Jersey. He has remained lodged in the Ocean County Jail since August 2025.

Prosecutor Billhimer credited Senior Assistant Prosecutor Stephen Burke, the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit-Vehicular Homicide Squad, Lakewood Township Police Department, Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the Ocean County Medical Examiner’s Office for their work on the case.