Court docs say the SUV in deadly crash was going ‘approximately 76 mph’ on Main Street

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WHEC) — The SUV that crashed into a car as the SUV was being chased by Rochester police last Friday was clocked at "approximately 76 miles an hour" on East Main Street.

The new information is shared in the court papers released after the driver of the SUV, Kendre Preston, was arraigned at Strong Hospital Monday afternoon.

Preston was at the hospital because, according to the court report, he broke a leg in the crash.

When he’s released from the hospital, Preston will be kept in jail because he is on parole and there is a "parole hold" on him.

The court papers say Preston "was traveling at approximately 76 mph. The defendant swerved two vehicles that were traveling in the westbound lanes of E. Main St. at N. Clinton Ave. driving in the center lane for several clocks going through the red light at Stone St. and Main St."

The papers continue "the defendant then drove through another solid red light at E. Main and St. Paul St. at an extremely high rate of speed."

Police say that’s when the SUV hit the car driven by a man named Benji Martinez, 46.

Rochester Police say Martinez’s car was hit on the driver’s door when Preston sped through a red light at E. Main and St. Paul Street.
The court papers say the force of the impact pushed Martinez’s car 300 yards down Main St.

Police were after Preston because they say he was suspected of firing a gun at several places around the city early Friday morning.

Rochester Police say they found a loaded handgun and magazine in Preston’s SUV, painted yellow, blue and orange to make it look like a toy gun.

.@RochesterNYPD tell us officers recovered this loaded Mac-11 from Preston’s vehicle, and that it’s painted this way to make it look like a toy gun. https://t.co/InziwQukXJ pic.twitter.com/LR6UUi1sHB

— news10nbc (@news10nbc) January 8, 2022

Preston is charged with manslaughter, vehicular manslaughter, possession of a weapon and impaired driving.

Preston spent four years in prison on a gun charge. He was released to parole 12 months ago. He got sent back to prison in September, accused of violating that parole and released again in November.