Jean Soriano, teen charged in deadly Nev. crash, had warrant issued for his arrest

(CBS/AP) LOS ANGELES - Records show an arrest warrant was issued a week after 18-year-old Jean Ervin Soriano had escaped from a juvenile facility - a disclosure that sheds some light on concerns that he might have slipped through the cracks before his arrest in a Nevada drunken driving crash that killed five members of one family.

The warrant was issued on March 8 by the Orange County Sheriff's Department, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday, citing department records.

Before his escape, Soriano was being held at the Youth Guidance Center in Santa Ana, Calif., an 80-bed, unguarded facility for low-level offenders operated by the Orange County Probation Department.

It was unclear whether authorities had been searching for Soriano before the Saturday, March 30 collision on a freeway outside Las Vegas.

Gail Krause, a Sheriff's Department spokeswoman, said Thursday the agency hadn't been asked to help look for Soriano.

Authorities say Soriano was arrested after the SUV he was driving rear-ended the van. Soriano told the arresting trooper he had "too many" beers before the crash, according to an arrest report.

Several beer bottles were found in the SUV, authorities said. Results of a blood-alcohol test were pending.

The van was carrying family members who had been visiting a sick relative in Denver. They were headed home to Southern California to prepare for an Easter celebration.

Three brothers, one of their wives and a girl were killed. Two other people were injured and hospitalized.

Soriano, who had only scrapes and bruises, was being held on $3.5 million bail and is due back in court next Wednesday. He has not yet been charged or entered a plea.