NEW ROCHELLE, NY (December 14, 2022) — Bethzy Higueros, 23, of Pelham, NY, appeared today before Judge James McCarty at the Westchester County Criminal Court where she pleaded guilty to reduced charges related to a fatal car crash in Mamaroneck that killed two New Rochelle woman.
She is scheduled for sentencing on April 5, 2023 where she faces up to 3 years in prison under a negotiated plea agreement where she pleaded guilty to Vehicular Manslaughter – 1st, a C Felony and DWI, an A Misdemeanor in exchange for 1 to 3 years in state prison plus fines and fees on the Felony charge and 364 days to run concurrent on the Misdemeanor charge plus fines and fees.
Family members of the two victims will be afforded time at sentencing to deliver victim impact statements.
Higueros asked to start serving her sentence early. Today she was ROR’d. She will appear before Judge McCarty on January 5, 2023 at which time she will be remanded to the Westchester County Jail. From there she is expected to serve her sentence in the women’s prison in Rochester or Bedford.
On April 11, 2021, at approximately 2:37 a.m., Higueros, who was 21 at the time of the incident, was driving over 80 mph on Boston Post Road in Mamaroneck when she drove onto the sidewalk and crashed into a utility pole, shearing off both passenger side doors. The car then caught on fire. Higueros had a blood alcohol content of .17 at the time of the collision.
New Rochelle resident Veronica Diaz Ayala, 20, died at the scene. New Rochelle resident Itzel Oliveros, 19, was transported to the hospital, where she died approximately two months later.
The three young people had reportedly been drinking that night at the now-closed Agave Azul at 238 Washington Avenue.
As relatives of Veronica Diaz Ayala and Itzel Oliveros (and a Higueros family member) looked on, a tearful Higueros accepted the negotiated plea under which she admitted to two of the 13 charges in an indictment under which she was arraigned on December 9, 2021.
Higueros was previously indicted by a Westchester County Grand Jury for two counts of Aggravated Vehicular Homicide, two counts of Vehicular Manslaughter in the First Degree, two counts of Manslaughter in the Second Degree, and two counts of Criminally Negligent Homicide, all felonies. She was also charged with two counts of Driving While Intoxicated and Reckless Driving, both misdemeanors, and Unlicensed Driving, an infraction.
The Village of Mamaroneck Police Department and the Village of Larchmont Police Department responded to the scene on the day of the crash. The Town of Mamaroneck Police Department, with assistance from the Westchester County Department of Public Safety, investigated the incident.
The case prosecuted by Senior Trial Counsel Craig Ascher.
Ascher explained to the court that the offer was based on extensive mitigation: Higueros age, her lack of a criminal history, treatment, sobriety, acceptance of responsibility, extreme remorse, and consultation with the Ayala and Oliveros family.