Driver sentenced after Hunts Point crash killed two passengers
Two names
Enrique Lopez lost control while stunt driving in Hunts Point on January 21, 2024, and collided with a parked fuel truck, killing two passengers and injuring two people, according to prosecutors and city crash records.
Location reported in Open Data.
What We Know
At 3:18 a.m. on January 21, 2024, Enrique Lopez was driving east on Viele Avenue in Hunts Point when he lost control during stunt driving and collided with a parked fuel truck, according to prosecutors. Two passengers, ages 15 and 21, died, and a 17-year-old passenger was critically injured. The city record counts two deaths and two injuries. It lists two parked tanker trucks, while news reports describe a collision with one fuel truck. Lopez pleaded guilty to two manslaughter counts and assault. News 12 reported that he received a sentence of 3 1/3 to 10 years for manslaughter, as well as a 3 1/2-year assault sentence and three years of post-release supervision.
The collision
Just after 3 a.m. on January 21, 2024, Enrique Lopez was driving a 2013 Chrysler east on Viele Avenue when he lost control and collided with a parked fuel truck. The city record places the crash at 3:18 a.m. and records two passengers killed and two people injured.
The city record lists two parked tanker trucks among the vehicles involved. Accounts from prosecutors and news reports describe Lopez colliding with one parked fuel truck.
Viele Avenue at Bryant Avenue
The collision happened at Viele and Bryant avenues in Hunts Point, an industrial area of the Bronx near the East River.
The passengers
The passengers who died were a 15-year-old girl from Rockland County and a 21-year-old man from Brooklyn. Reports give different versions of their names: The Post and amNewYork called the girl Sabrina Villagomez, while News 12 called her Sabrina Villa-Gomez-Gonzalez. The Post called the man Giovante Roberson, amNewYork called him Gilvante Roberson, and News 12 called him Gilvante Roberston.
Sabrina Roberson-McCray, whom The Post identified as the young man's mother, recalled his love of Michael Jackson and travel and how he helped her. "He was my best friend," she said.
News 12 identified a third passenger as 17-year-old Aaliyah Torres. AmNewYork reported that she was taken to Saint Barnabas Hospital in critical condition.
Prosecutors described stunt driving
Prosecutors said Lopez was doing stunts at a car meet-up before he lost control. They said he had spun the Chrysler near bystanders and driven about 45 mph over the speed limit.
Guilty plea and sentence
Police charged Lopez with manslaughter and other offenses days after the crash. He later pleaded guilty to two counts of manslaughter for the passengers' deaths and assault for Torres's injuries.
News 12 reported that Lopez received a sentence of 3 1/3 to 10 years in prison for manslaughter, as well as 3 1/2 years for assault and three years of post-release supervision.