U-Haul driver charged with manslaughter after fatal Flushing crash.
Jamie Ferreira was charged with manslaughter after prosecutors alleged she struck David Opiela while driving a westbound U-Haul in the crash recorded at 12:29 a.m. on August 20, 2024, at Horace Harding Expressway and Kissena Boulevard.
Approximate reported location.
What We Know
The official record places the fatal crash at Horace Harding Expressway and Kissena Boulevard at 12:29 a.m. on August 20, 2024, and records one pedestrian killed and one motorist injured. Reports differed on whether the Honda and U-Haul collided before Opiela was struck or whether the U-Haul struck him before colliding with the Honda. Prosecutors later alleged Ferreira was speeding, struck Opiela and fled on foot with passenger Jennifer Sablan; in February 2025, Ferreira and Sablan faced criminal charges.
Reports differ on how Opiela was struck.
The official record lists one pedestrian killed and one motorist injured in the August 20, 2024, crash at 12:29 a.m. at Horace Harding Expressway and Kissena Boulevard.
Gothamist reported that the southbound Honda and westbound U-Haul collided and that Opiela was struck nearby. amNewYork described him as caught between the colliding vehicles. ABC7 reported that both vehicles went over the curb after the collision and that Opiela appeared to be crossing.
The New York Post and El Diario instead placed the U-Haul's curb mounting and impact with Opiela and a light pole before its collision with the Honda. The Daily News later reported that Ferreira struck Opiela and a light pole before driving away and colliding with the Honda. Spectrum Noticias reported that police were investigating which vehicle struck him, so the sequence remains disputed.
The westbound vehicle has different descriptions.
The official record lists a 2015 Ford pickup traveling west and a 2015 Honda sedan traveling south. Press reports identify the westbound vehicle as a U-Haul; the Daily News describes it as a box truck. Reports identify the Honda as an Accord.
The official record lists unsafe speed as a contributing factor. Separately, prosecutors later alleged that Ferreira was speeding.
Friends remembered Opiela as a quiet regular.
Reports identified David Opiela, 56, as the pedestrian who died. Michael Abbate, a friend of more than 30 years, recalled their trips together for coffee and to neighborhood shops. Workers at a nearby gas station remembered Opiela as a quiet, frequent customer.
Abbate told ABC7 that Opiela was a “Good man, soft-spoken, didn't rob, steal, didn't hurt anyone...just minding his own business going home.” A former girlfriend told the station that Opiela had lost several family members, including a twin sister, in a house fire years earlier.
Authorities announced charges six months later.
On February 7, 2025, prosecutors announced that Jamie Ferreira, 37, faced a 77-count indictment that included manslaughter, burglary, assault, reckless driving, speeding and leaving the scene without reporting. Jennifer Sablan, 43, was also charged in the case. Prosecutors alleged Ferreira was driving the U-Haul, struck Opiela and fled on foot with Sablan. These are allegations, not findings of guilt.
Prosecutors said both women also faced charges involving forged instruments, stolen property, burglar's tools and unlawful possession of personal identification information. The Daily News reported that Ferreira had been arrested in Pennsylvania earlier that week.
Where
Kissena Boulevard and Horace Harding Expressway, Flushing, Queens