A 41-year-old Kent woman faces charges of vehicular homicide and vehicular assault in a March 28 crash in Kent that killed Jose Ortiz, 55, and injured his wife while they were driving home from church.
Wajiha Mubin Din remains in custody at the King County Correctional Facility in Seattle with bail set at $750,000, according to King County jail records. She has a pretrial hearing on July 21 and a scheduled trial date of Sept. 2 at the Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent.
Din reportedly had been consuming alcohol all day prior to the 9:44 p.m. crash at the intersection of 94th Avenue South and South 240th Street, according to charging documents filed April 25. Win was reportedly speeding southbound on 94th Avenue South. She allegedly admitted to speeding 70 mph in a 25 mph zone when she failed to stop or slow for a red light at the intersection.
Ortiz was driving with his wife in the front passenger seat. He was going eastbound on South 240th Street with a green light when Din reportedly plowed into the driver’s side of the car and spun it into a telephone pole, according to charging documents. Ortiz died at the scene. Paramedics transported his wife, 51, to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, where she was treated for broken ribs and collarbone and bleeding in her abdomen.
Din was still in her driver’s seat when Kent Police arrived. She reportedly exhibited several signs of being intoxicated, according to charging papers.
Din is a repeat driving under the influence (DUI) offender, including a 2022 DUI in Delaware and a pending DUI in December 2024 in Delaware, according to court docements.
The mother of Din told police that her daughter has mental health problems and needs treatment. It is unknown how long she has been in Washington state.
A GoFundMe page for Jose Ortiz, started by his niece Brenda Ortiz, of Kent, has raised $23,830 to help pay for his funeral and medical costs for his wife, according to the account. Jose Ortiz was a member of Holy Spirit Church in Kent.
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