Two days later, following our Penal Procedure, the prosecutor can order to extend the detention of a suspect for an additional eight days. This is what happened last Wednesday, in the case of the driver involved in the fatal accident that occurred early Monday morning in Savaneta.
The case is currently under investigation, but everything shows that the young man (only 23 years old) will be pursued for causing a fatal traffic accident. Considering that he was drunk and without a driver’s license, there will likely be more than four years of punishment. This also means that the young man will remain locked up in KIA until his case comes forward.
Denied police’s alcohol test
During the first moment at the scene of the accident, the driver refused to measure his alcohol level. However, after the police arrived and explained the consequences of his decision not to blow, he decided to cooperate. He was informed that if he didn’t blow, the prosecutor would impose the maximum penalty on him, according to our penal code. By blowing, he would get the exact level of alcohol in his system, which could “help” when determining his punishment. The suspect hesitated for a while before he heeded the advice of the police and decided to blow at the police station. Obviously, the test indicated that he was drunk behind the wheel.
No driver’s license
But there is another problem at hand. It turns out he doesn’t have a driver’s license either, so in fact, he should have never been behind the wheel in the first place! With that, the suspect is now faced with the weight of the law against him, because due to his bad behavior in traffic, he took the life of another young man. His behavior was captured on several security cameras in the area clearly indicating that the motorcyclist was not speeding, but that he was racing another car. The two cars, both Nissan Marches, passed a garbage truck and hit the motorcycle head-on on his side of the road.
Second traffic fatality
The accident between a car and a scooter took place on Monday, March 18th, at 4:40 am near the Nagico office in Savaneta. At 5:30 am, Doctor Texier pronounced the young man Maximilian Thomas A. Hernandez Pinedo, born in Aruba on April 4th, 2003, dead, at just 20 years old. The blue Nissan March collided head-on with the Suzuki motorcycle. There were four people in the car, and they all received medical attention at the scene.
Suspect fell ill in custody
Last Wednesday, an ambulance was sent to the Santa Cruz police station for a prisoner. It turned out to be the young suspect in the fatal accident. It seems he is not eating well and hyperventilating. The ambulance took him to the hospital, under police custody, for medical treatment. After he improved, he was brought back to his cell. It was noted that if he couldn’t handle the situation, it was decided to start arranging the process to transfer him to KIA immediately.
Insurance will not cover the costs
The fact that a driver did not have a license and was drunk, automatically means that insurance does not cover the damage caused. This is a hard blow for the family of the deceased, who now have to cover all the funeral expenses themselves and fix the motorcycle out of pocket. Of course, during the court proceedings, there will be a civil lawsuit for the material damage caused. Given that the victim’s partner is pregnant and that she proved that the deceased was the “breadwinner” for the child, there may also be a request to financially support the child until adulthood. All these types of claims can be filed in court, although it remains to be seen whether they will be honored or not.
