A driver who allegedly caused a weekend crash in Miami Gardens that killed multiple children and their grandmother was going 99 mph at the time of impact, police said.
Miami Gardens Police held a news conference Tuesday morning to announce that they’ve obtained an arrest warrant for the driver, 25-year-old Antonio Wilcox Jr., on four counts of vehicular homicide in the Saturday evening crash.
Five children and three adults were riding in a white Nissan Altima when they were involved in the crash at Northwest 170th Street and 37th Avenue shortly before 6 p.m.
Surveillance video showed a black Kia Sorrento rear-ending the Altima, which then crashed into a silver Cadillac Escalade.
On Monday, the three children who were killed were identified as siblings by their aunt, and the adult killed was identified as their grandmother, 51-year-old Rosa Jones.
Family Photos
Among the children killed were Kamari Graham, who was celebrating his 10th birthday, 8-year-old Azariah McCall, and 10-year-old Ireanna Johnson.
Their other sibling, 13-year-old Ka’Myra Graham, was severely injured and left brain dead, their aunt said.
The kids’ mother, Donika Johnson, and her partner, Ariel Johnson, were also hospitalized. A 7-year-old boy who is a family friend was also in the car and was hospitalized in stable condition.
Family Photo
Police said Tuesday that Donika Johnson and Ka’Myra Graham remained in critical condition and were fighting for their lives. At least three people who were in the car didn’t have seatbelts on, police said
Miami Gardens Police said that the driver of the Sorento, Wilcox Jr., was at fault and was driving at a high rate of speed.
“Mr. Wilcox was driving at approximately 99 mph, accelerating at the point of impact, the accelerator was all the way down,” Miami Gardens Police Executive Officer Emmanuel Jeanty said Tuesday.
Jeanty said Wilcox had alcohol in his system and was being tested for other possible impairment factors.
Wilcox remained hospitalized but was expected to be booked into jail on the charges after his release.
“Mr. Wilcox made a conscious decision to get into that vehicle and drive in a reckless manner with no regard to human life,” Jeanty said. “In my law enforcement career this has been the worst accident that I have witnessed and as a matter of fact, our traffic homicide detective had even stated the same, in their many years of investigating these types of crashes, the detective even stated this was the worst accident that he had to investigate.”
Jeanty said Wilcox is from Naples, and investigators don’t know why he was in Miami Gardens.
“We want to send a message out to the community: If you operate a vehicle in a reckless manner and it takes someone’s life away, you will be held and you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” Jeanty said. “Drive safe, wear your seatbelts, and understand that you are not the only ones operating in the roadway.”
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