GREENSBORO — A man arrested after a fatal wreck on Monday had his bond increased Tuesday afternoon during a court hearing.
Shelton Phelps, 29, of 3106 Timmons Ave., is charged with felony aid and abet. Judge Susan Bray raised his bond from $10,000 to $25,000.
Phelps was arrested after a woman died in a crash involving two vehicles on U.S. 29 early Monday. Greensboro police identified the victim as Cherita Jones, 23, of Greensboro.
Police are looking for 26-year-old Shaquetta Johnson of Greensboro, who officers say was driving the car in which Jones was a passenger. Police believe she was picked up in a third vehicle that came upon the accident shortly after it happened. Phelps was in that third vehicle.
Jones' family members attended the court hearing on Tuesday and said she was friends with Johnson. The family is still trying to make sense of how the wreck occurred.
"We're not trying to blame anyone, we just want answers," said Jones' husband, Joey, 25. He has heard rumors that the cars were racing, but that has not been confirmed.
The couple has a 2-year-old son, Jamari. Joey Jones is a staff sergeant in the U.S. Army stationed at Fort Jackson in South Carolina. Cherita Jones was planning on going back to school for nursing.
Greensboro police gave this account of the crash:
Shortly before 3 a.m. Monday, two cars took the exit from Interstate 40 onto northbound U.S. 29.
A black 2004 Acura TSX driven by Johnson left the road to the right, hit an earthen berm at the former Bothwell Street exit and rolled several times.
About the same time, a dark gray 2006 BMW sedan left the road to the left, hit the concrete retaining wall and ended up in the southbound lane. Four people in the BMW left the vehicle, and police are searching for them.
Then a Chevrolet Tahoe pulled up near the Acura. The SUV’s occupants pulled Johnson from the wreck and drove away with her, leaving Jones behind.
Police said they believe that the people in all three vehicles had been at B.G. McGee’s, a sports bar on High Point Road, shortly before the crash.
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