Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly announced that a Hempstead man was arraigned today on manslaughter and other charges for allegedly driving drunk and crashing his vehicle into a pole, killing one of his passengers and injuring another in February.
Elvin Maradiaga Ortiz, 33, was arraigned before Judge Christopher Quinn on charges of Manslaughter in the Second Degree (a C felony); Vehicular Manslaughter in the Second Degree (a D felony); Leaving the Scene of an Incident Resulting in Death (a D felony); Assault in the Third Degree (an A misdemeanor); and Driving While Intoxicated (an unclassified misdemeanor). The defendant pleaded not guilty and was remanded. He is due back in court on July 18, 2024. If convicted, he faces up to five to 15 years in prison.
“After crashing his vehicle into a pole on Jerusalem Avenue, flipping the car and killing 35-year-old Alex Banegas Figueroa, this defendant allegedly took off on foot,” said DA Donnelly. “Piecing together his movements before the fatal crash using surveillance video, investigators discovered that Maradiaga Ortiz allegedly spent hours excessively drinking at a local bar before getting behind the wheel and veering off the roadway. There is no excuse for drinking and driving. It is a decision that can have catastrophic consequences and can cost someone their life.”
DA Donnelly said that, according to the charges, on February 24, 2024, at approximately 5:10 a.m., the defendant was driving a 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee westbound on Jerusalem Avenue in Uniondale while intoxicated. Ortiz had two passengers in his vehicle.
While traveling along Jerusalem Avenue, the defendant drove off the roadway, causing the vehicle to strike a pole and flip over. Both of the defendant’s passengers were injured in the crash.
After the collision, the defendant allegedly fled the scene on foot, leaving his backseat passenger, 35-year-old Alex Banegas Figueroa, unconscious in the Jeep.
Figueroa was transported to Nassau University Medical Center after the crash and was pronounced deceased one week later on March 1, 2024.
The defendant’s surviving passenger suffered head and right shoulder pain and a laceration to his head.
A subsequent investigation revealed that the defendant allegedly drank multiple alcoholic beverages over the course of several hours at a local bar prior to the collision.
The defendant was arrested by members of the Nassau County Police Department on March 21, 2024.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Alexandra Russell and Deputy Bureau Chief Katie Zizza of the Vehicular Crimes Bureau under the supervision of Bureau Chief Michael Bushwack and the overall supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney for the Litigation Division Kevin Higgins. The defendant is represented by Taryn Shechter, Esq.
The charges are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless found guilty.