According to Hudson County officials, on November 1, at approximately 3:40 a.m., members of the West New York Police Department responded to 214 63rd Street in West New York on reports of an unconscious woman.
Upon arrival, West New York Police Officers discovered an unresponsive female in the vestibule area of that location.
Officials say the female was identified as Irma Contreras Flores, 32, of West New York. She was transported by Emergency Medical Services to Palisades Medical Center in North Bergen.
Mediacal personnel pronounced Flores dead at approximately 4:20 a.m. at Palisades Medical Center. The exact cause of her death is pending investigation by the Regional Medical Examiner’s Office.
A preliminary investigation was conducted by members of the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office with the assistance of the West New York Police Department.
According to authorities Monday, November 4, members of the Prosecutor’s Office arrested Edwin Velasco-Salazar, 22, of West New York and charged him in connection with this case. He was arrested without incident at the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office in Jersey City.
Velasco-Salazar has been charged with Aggravated Assault in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1, a second-degree crime; Endangering an Injured Victim in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1.2, a third-degree crime; and Sexual Assault in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:14-2, a second-degree crime.
Velasco-Salazar was transported to the Hudson County Correctional Facility in Kearny pending his first appearance. The Prosecutor’s Office has filed a motion for pretrial detention of the defendant.
The Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office continues to investigate this case with the assistance of the West New Police Department. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Office of the Hudson County Prosecutor at 201-915-1345 or to leave an anonymous tip on the Hudson County Prosecutor’s official website at http://www.hudsoncountyprosecutorsofficenj.org/homicide-tip/. All information will be kept confidential.