State Police in Canandaigua say a Victor man has been arrested following a long-term investigation into an unattended death in Ontario County.
Authorities report that 32-year-old Ariel Ceja was taken into custody after a Bureau of Criminal Investigation review into the death of 18-year-old Maria Cecilia De Jesus-Garcia, which happened last year.
Troopers and emergency crews were called on August 5, 2024, to a home on Winding Creek Way in the Town of Victor for a report of an unresponsive woman. De Jesus-Garcia was pronounced dead at the scene. An autopsy later found she died from complications related to acute alcohol intoxication.
Investigators say they conducted several interviews and reviewed surveillance video from Adelita’s Mexican Cocina and Tequila, where De Jesus-Garcia worked and was last known to have consumed alcohol. The investigation determined she was served alcohol while under the legal drinking age.
The case was later presented to the Ontario County Grand Jury, which returned an indictment charging Ceja.
On December 18, Ceja was arrested and charged with criminally negligent homicide, a felony, and unlawful dealing with a child in the first degree involving alcohol, a misdemeanor.
State Police say Ceja was taken into custody without incident, processed at SP Canandaigua, and transported to the Ontario County Jail, where he is being held pending arraignment.
The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
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