Bradley Ruben of Hollywood, Florida is accused of causing a fatal car crash on I-95 that led to the death of Juan Pedro Garcia of North Bay Village, and attempting to run from the scene of the accident.
Ruben, 32, is charged with resisting arrest and failing to stop at an accident involving death. During his first-appearance court session on Thursday, prosecutors asked for a $100,000 bond out of concern that Ruben might flee the state because he’s a professional poker play who has made a lot of money.
“He has winnings upward of $360,000 from what I can find so far,” stated prosecutor Veronica Rivera in court, according to news sources. “The state is concerned with him traveling to different states, traveling outside of the country, he does have financial means.”
The presiding judge complied with the request and set Ruben’s bond at $100,000. He posted it on the same day and was released.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, the crash occurred during the early hours of Wednesday on I-95 just past Oakland Park Boulevard. Garcia’s wife, Aleshandra Favre, had called her husband and a tow truck to the scene of an accident that occurred earlier. The details of that crash are unclear.
After FHP troopers completed their investigation and left, Garcia drove his wife’s Ford Focus to the right shoulder of the highway near his own vehicle to wait for the tow truck. As the Ford was being loaded up onto the tow truck, someone driving a Volkswagen crashed into it. The impact knocked the Ford into Garcia, severely injuring him. He died at the hospital.
The driver of the Volkswagen, who was identified as Ruben, got out of the vehicle and tried to run south on the highway. He was captured by police and was taken into custody.
“The defendant crashed and then ran, continued to run southbound on foot, he did not walk away casually. He ran,” said Rivera.
Police believe alcohol may have been a factor in the crash, but they are waiting for toxicology reports before charging Ruben with a DUI. He allegedly admitted to having a marijuana edible prior to the accident.
“The defendant did admit to having an edible, he did admit to feeling its effects. So while he’s currently charged with DUI, he did have blood drawn, the state will be looking at all possible charges down the road,” Rivera stated in court.
Ruben reportedly has six traffic infractions on his record, the most recent of which was in October 2017 for running a red light.
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Source: 5.17.18 suspect_in_attempted_hit_and_run_crash_makes_first_court_appearance.pdf