Two women were killed and now a man is in jail, South Carolina officials say
A West Columbia man was locked up in a Midlands jail the day after two women were killed and another person was hurt in a crash, according to the South Carolina Highway Patrol.
Abel Ramirez Ortega, 37, was arrested Monday and charged with two counts of felony DUI (with death), Master Trooper William Bennett told The State. Ortega was also charged with single counts of driving without a license and driving under suspension, jail records show.
Ortega was driving one of the two vehicles involved in Sunday night in a crash at a Lexington County intersection, according to the Highway Patrol.
Claire Ann Pierce, a 22-year-old Lexington resident, and Eliza Jane Udy, a 21-year-old Leesville resident, were passengers who died in what Lexington County Coroner Margaret Fisher called an accident.
At about 9 p.m. Sunday, Ortega was driving a 2019 Jeep Laredo SUV east on Ben Franklin Road, according to the Highway Patrol. At the intersection with Neely Wingard Road, the SUV collided with a 2004 Chevrolet Malibu that was driving south, the Highway Patrol said. That’s in the Leesville area of Lexington County, near Exit 39 on Interstate 20.
Pierce and Udy were two of the three people in the Chevy, officials said. Pierce died at the scene and Udy was taken to an area hospital where she was pronounced dead due to the injuries she suffered in the wreck, according to Fisher.
Ortega was the only person in the SUV, according to the Highway Patrol. Both he and the Chevy driver were hurt and taken to an area hospital with what Fisher said were non-life-threatening injuries. Further information on the Chevy driver’s condition was not available.
No other injuries were reported.
After getting medically cleared by hospital staff, Ortega was taken into custody and was booked into the Lexington County Detention Center, jail records show. Bond was denied on all four charges and Ortega remains behind bars, according to jail records.
In 2020, Ortega was charged with driving without a license as well as operating vehicle on highway without registration and license due to delinquency, Lexington County court records show.
He was also listed as the defendant in a 2023 common pleas court case that was connected to a motor vehicle accident, according to court records. He was ordered to pay $1,800 following the judgment in that case, court records show.
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This story was originally published May 21, 2025 at 2:04 PM with the headline "Two women were killed and now a man is in jail, South Carolina officials say."
