An illegal immigrant involved in a traffic accident that took the lives of four family members as they vacationed at Disney World has been charged with careless driving in Florida.
Lucas Dos Reis Laurindo, a Brazilian national, was driving a pickup truck down Florida’s 429 highway last month when traffic began to slow down, according to police. He failed to slow down in time and crashed into a Toyota Sienna, which overturned. The crash killed 5-year-old Scarlett Smith, her 12-year-old brother Jaxon Smith, their mother, 41-year-old Julie Smith, and grandmother, 76-year-old Josephine Fay.
Josephine’s husband, Bill, Julie’s husband, Shane, and their daughters Shalie and Skylar were in the car as well but survived the crash. The Massachusetts family was in Florida to visit Disney World.
The Florida Highway Patrol concluded its investigation into the crash on Monday and issued a careless driving ticket to Laurindo.
“The result of the crash investigation has determined that Mr. Dos Reis Laurindo was at fault for the collision,” the Florida Highway Patrol said in a statement. “Under Florida law, the strongest charge that could be made against him, is a ticket issued for careless driving.”
Laurindo was arrested for a visa violation on Feb. 21 as he attempted to board a plane to his home country of Brazil, according to WFTV.
Laurindo said authorities told him he was “being detained for deportation because he may have unlawfully worked while in the country.”
Laurindo is currently being held at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Glades County, Florida.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to help the Fay and Smith families, and it has raised more than $120,000.
There were 74,523 DUI charges and convictions to go along with 68,236 other driving offenses among those arrested by ICE in 2019 alone.
*Story by The Washington Examiner