A 53-year-old man has been arrested in connection with a deadly hit-and-run crash that left one person dead and four others seriously injured last month in Miami’s Liberty City area, according to an arrest warrant obtained by Local 10 News on Thursday.
Authorities said Ivan Maurice Houston was behind the wheel of a black 2015 Mercedes-Benz C300 when he lost control and crashed into a bus stop, striking multiple pedestrians before fleeing the scene.
It happened around 9 a.m. on March 22 at the intersection of Northwest 17th Avenue and 54th Street.
Investigators said surveillance footage from nearby businesses captured the moments leading up to the crash.
According to police, Houston’s vehicle was stopped at a red light behind a white pickup truck when the light turned green.
As the vehicles moved forward, investigators said Houston “for unknown reasons” suddenly accelerated at a high speed.
They said he swerved to avoid rear-ending the truck but lost control, veering onto the sidewalk and plowing through the bus stop.
Miami police confirmed that two people were sitting on the bench at the time of the crash.
One of them, 47-year-old Patricia Valencia, was critically injured and rushed to Jackson Memorial Hospital’s Ryder Trauma Center, where she later died during emergency surgery, according to the warrant.
Kenneth Wilcox, 57, who was also sitting on the bench, suffered multiple spinal fractures and broken ribs, the warrant stated.
Police said another pedestrian, Jamie Lee Ward, 39, who was standing near the bus stop, sustained a fractured arm, ruptured spleen, and severe pelvic injuries. Two passengers inside Houston’s vehicle, Eric Johnson, 45, and Yvonne Kimbrough, 58, also suffered serious injuries, including lung contusions and multiple broken ribs, they said.
After the crash, police said Houston and his passengers managed to exit the overturned vehicle.
They said Houston urged two of his injured passengers to claim that one of them had been driving before he fled the scene on foot, failing to render aid to the victims.
Authorities said first responders arrived at the scene to find two victims trapped in the wreckage. One person had to be extricated from the vehicle by Miami Fire Rescue, while another was ejected upon impact.
Police initially believed Houston had been transported to the hospital along with the other victims, but further investigation revealed he had disappeared.
Detectives interviewed the surviving passengers and obtained statements confirming Houston had been the driver at the time of the crash.
One of the passengers, after initially claiming to be the driver, later admitted Houston was behind the wheel, according to the report.
Security footage from a nearby Chevron gas station also showed a man matching Houston’s description exiting the vehicle first before helping another passenger out.
Witnesses told police they noticed a strong smell of alcohol on Houston’s breath, the warrant stated.
Authorities later determined that Houston had a suspended Florida driver’s license and was on probation until 2028 for aggravated abuse of an elderly or disabled person.
Following an extensive search, police obtained a warrant for Houston’s arrest.
Jail records show he is now facing multiple charges, including five counts of driving with a suspended license causing death and serious bodily injury, and two counts of tampering with a witness.
As of Thursday, Houston was being held on a $70,000 bond at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.
Records show he was previously arrested on an attempted felony murder charge in an unrelated case.
In the days following the crash, a small memorial with stuffed animals and flowers was set up at the bus stop where the deadly crash occurred.
Residents of the Liberty City neighborhood say they are heartbroken over the incident and are calling for increased traffic safety measures at the busy intersection.
