Bristol County man pleads guilty to drug, gun, and manslaughter charges after fatal crash in Taunton that killed Middleborough woman, Fall River native

A Norton and Medford man has pled guilty in Fall River Superior Court on charges connected to the November 7, 2022, fatal crash on Kingman Road in Taunton which claimed the life of a 54-year-old Middleborough woman and Fall River native.

Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn’s Office stated after Hector Bannister-Sanchez’s arraignment in January of 2023 that Assistant District Attorney Kaitlyn O’Leary told the court that the defendant was the target of a four-month long drug investigation leading up to the events of November 7th. Investigators had sought and obtained a court-authorized GPS for Bannister-Sanchez’s Toyota Highlander. On November 7, 2022, investigators intended to stop Bannister-Sanchez as part of the culmination of their investigation. After conducting surveillance of him traveling to his alleged stash house in Norton, they believed he was driving to complete a drug deal with a frequent customer in Middleboro. As investigators parked behind him and approached Bannister-Sanchez’s vehicle, they announced their presence as police and demanded that he show his hands. However, rather than stop, Bannister-Sanchez reportedly fled.

O’Leary told the court Bannister-Sanchez drove through a front yard, crashed into the property’s front landing, and forced a state trooper to get out of the way in order to avoid being hit. Despite not being chased by police, Bannister-Sanchez allegedly proceeded to drive at sustained and extremely high speeds as he fled through Middleboro, Lakeville, and ultimately into Taunton. The court-authorized GPS affixed to his vehicle showed him traveling at speeds as high as 101 MPH towards the beginning of his flight and 84.3 MPH as he approached the turn onto Kingman Street in Taunton, where the crash occurred.

O’Leary noted that witnesses observed Bannister-Sanchez driving at dangerous and excessive speeds, crossing in and out of oncoming traffic as he did so, and forcing other vehicles on the road out of the way in order to avoid getting hit. He traveled at these high speeds on routes that were at times densely populated with other vehicles traveling them, and that were lined with residences, businesses, and at least one school. His vehicle eventually crashed into a red Ford Fusion, being operated by Lori Medeiros. Data obtained pursuant to a search warrant from the Event Data Recorder of the defendant’s Toyota Highlander revealed that approximately five seconds prior to impact, Bannister-Sanchez was driving 101 miles per hour on a street where the unposted speed limit is 35 MPH.

Lori Medeiros was trapped inside the Ford Fusion and was ultimately taken to Morton Hospital in Taunton, where she was pronounced deceased. After Bannister-Sanchez collided into Lori Medeiros’ vehicle, the witness who had been driving behind her saw the operator and sole occupant of the Highlander, who she described as a black male, approximately in his 30s with dreads or braids, grab a black backpack from inside the Highlander and take off running away from the direction of the crash site. He fled on foot from the crash. but was apprehended a short time later on South Precinct Street.

O’Leary informed the court that the backpack Bannister-Sanchez grabbed from the Highlander contained $16,350 in cash and that Bannister-Sanchez’s wallet and cellphones were found in the Highlander.

After his arraignment concerning the fatal crash, Bannister-Sanchez was indicted by a Bristol County Grand Jury on additional charges of Trafficking in Excess of 200 Grams of a Class B Drug, Trafficking in Excess of 100 Grams of a Class B Drug, Trafficking in Excess of 36 Grams of a Class A Drug, Unlawful Possession of a Large Capacity Firearm and two counts of Unlawful Possession of a Firearm with a Prior Felony Conviction.

The narcotics and illegal firearms-related indictments came as a result of a search warrant executed at a stash house in Norton where investigators found approximately 750 grams of suspected cocaine, approximately 70 grams of suspected fentanyl powder, approximately 240 grams of suspected fentanyl pills, approximately 182 grams of suspected methamphetamine pills, a Glock 19 firearm with a large capacity magazine containing 11 rounds, approximately $46,130.00 in cash, paperwork for the defendant, drug packaging materials and drug legers and notes.

According to the Bristol County DA’s Office, Bannister-Sanchez was out on bail at the time for a superior court drug trafficking case and on probation for other drug offenses at the time of the crash.

Court records show that on Monday, Bannister-Sanchez pled guilty to a lesser charge of Manslaughter after initially being charged with Murder.

He also pled guilty to Trafficking in Excess of 200 Grams of a Cocaine, Trafficking in Excess of 100 Grams of Meth, Trafficking in Excess of 36 Grams of a Class A Drug, Unlawful Possession of a Large Capacity Firearm, Possession of a Firearm without an FID Card, Possession of Ammunition without an FID Card, Assault with a Dangerous Weapon, Reckless Operation of a Motor Vehicle, Leaving the Scene of Property Damage, and Failure to Stop for Police.

Sentencing is scheduled for next week.