Allegedly high on pot, N.Y. man arraigned in triple fatal

A New York man accused of being high on marijuana while causing a crash that killed three people in Cherry Hill was arraigned in Superior Court today.

Sheraz Khan, 41, of West Babylon, N.Y., was ordered held on $350,000 bail. He was extradited yesterday from New York, where he was arrested on vehicular homicide charges in January.

Khan is accused of driving into oncoming traffic on I-295 in September, crashing his 18-wheeler into a Volkswagen convertible and a refrigerated produce truck.

Lawrence M. Wright, 66, of Keller, Texas, was killed in the convertible. Juma Rajab, 44, of Philadelphia, and his passenger, Renee Lesenko, 44, also of Philadelphia, were killed in the truck.

Khan was hauling heavy machinery when he crashed through a guide rail and crossed the grass median into the interstate's southbound lanes. The crash occurred near the Route 70 overpass around 10:20 a.m. on Sept. 11, authorities said.

Khan's truck rolled on to its right side, but Khan was not injured.

All three victims died instantly, police said.

State police troopers who searched Khan's truck found "several smoking devices" and 39 pills of methandrostenolone, a steroid listed as a controlled dangerous substance.

Witnesses described Khan's truck as traveling more than 60 mph before suddenly swerving without braking, according to court documents. The witnesses said they thought the driver had fallen asleep or "had a heart attack."

A blood sample taken eight hours after the crash found marijuana in Khan's system. A forensic toxicologist determined that Khan was "severely impaired" at the time of the crash, court documents said.