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February 21, 2025
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UPDATE -- Teen involved in fatal 2023 Poinciana crash charged, arrested
By Kristin Hurst on Friday, February 21, 2025
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Pair arrested in gambling, drug bust
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FRIDAY UPDATE: The Florida Highway Patrol warrant issued for the then 15-year-old driver who troopers say was responsible for a crash at San Miguel Road and Laurel Avenue in Poinciana that killed four people, including three children, in September 2023.
Ri'Shard Laroy Ferguson, now 16, turned himself in Friday and was taken into custody at the Juvenile Detention Center. He is charged with four counts of vehicular homicide, causing a crash with serious bodily injury and driving without a driver's license.
The crash occurred on Sept. 3, 2023. The victims were 50-year-old Trinidad Hernandez and her grandchildren 11-year-old Miley Cruz, 9-year-old Marven Cruz, and 1-year-old Anayari Cruz. Angel Luis Hernandez, 52, was seriously injured in the crash.
Court records show Ri'shard was arrested for much the same offense, driving without a license, on July 15, 2024, three days shy of his 16th birthday. He was driving a silver 2000 Toyota utility vehicle after 11 p.m. with two other 15-year-olds and a 16-year-old as passengers. None of occupants had a driver's license. An Osceola County Sheriff's deputy issued a citation and a court date, and Ri'Shard and the vehicle were, "remanded to a family member of the owner." That case is still going through the system, court records show.
The teen's arrest follows Thursday's arrest of his father, Richard Ferguson, 68, who is accused of allowing the boy to drive the car and has been charged with four counts of manslaughter. At an initial appearance in front of a judge Thursday he was ordered held on $60,000 bond ($15,000 for each charge). Troopers accuse Ferguson of allowing his unlicensed to drive his vehicle, leading to the fatal collision on Sept. 3, 2023.
According to FHP reports, a 2012 Chevrolet Impala, was traveling over 75 mph when it ran a stop sign and collided with a gray 2022 Honda HR-V driven by Trinidad Hernandez, 50. The posted speed in the residential area was 30 mph. The Honda hit a light pole and overturned.
The suspect's vehicle carried four juveniles, including the unlicensed driver, now identified as the younger Ferguson, who sustained a leg fracture in the crash. All were transported with non-life-threatening injuries.
Witnesses reported seeing the Impala speeding away from nearby Deerwood Park moments before the crash. Data retrieved from the vehicle's event recorder confirmed that the driver had fully depressed the accelerator in the moments leading up to the collision and never applied the brakes.
FHP reports said the teen told a witness after the crash that he was going to get in trouble with his parents because he wasn't where he was supposed to be. He also asked about the condition of the Honda passengers and whether he would be going to prison for the rest of his life. Neither he nor his father provided a statement to troopers at the time, according to reports.
FHP investigators determined that prior to the accident, Ferguson moved another vehicle out of the driveway of his home to allow his son and three passengers under his supervision to leave in his car. Reports indicated witnesses told troopers that Ferguson gave his son permission to run a quick errand and come right back.
Witnesses reported that family members of the teen driver attempted to remove him from the scene after the accident before law enforcement arrived, with some instructing him to remain silent. Neither FHP nor the Orange-Osceola State Attorney's Office have announced what, if any charges have been filed against the driver.
Within days of the accident, two new stop signs were installed on San Miguel Road at Laurel Avenue, making the intersection a four-way stop.
Kissimmee pair arrested in gas station gambling, drug bust
A Kissimmee gas station manager and a local woman were separately arrested after police uncovered illegal gambling operations, unauthorized alcohol sales and a significant quantity of fentanyl at a Michigan Avenue gas station just north of U.S. Highway 192, authorities said.
Friday night, Kissimmee police executed a search warrant at Right Fuel based on a witness tip. Inside, investigators found five operational slot machines, $14,045 in cash and evidence of illegal alcohol consumption, according to an arrest affidavit.
During questioning, store manager M.D. Jahangir Alam, 61, said he worked for the store for a year and admitted to knowing gambling without a license was illegal. He told detectives when customers cashed out, a receipt would print behind the register, and he would pay them from the cash register or money stored behind the counter. Detectives also found a small key on Alam that opened all five gambling machines. The slot machines were leased and had been in the store for four to five months, according to reports.
Authorities determined that the business was also violating Florida liquor laws. Right Fuel operates under a "2APS" license, which allows only beer and wine sales for off-site consumption. Alam admitted to permitting customers to drink alcohol inside the store, the report said.
Further investigation revealed that the store's owner, who resides in Jacksonville, would visit weekly to collect cash from the gambling machines. The owner reportedly told police he believed the slot machines were legal but acknowledged he did not have a gambling license.
Alam was arrested and booked into the Osceola County Jail on charges of running an illegal gambling operation, possessing gambling machines and selling beverages without a proper license. Jail records show he posted a $750 bond and has since been released.
During the operation, officers noticed a group of people near two parked vehicles, but the individuals quickly dispersed, abandoning their cars. Police spotted a small plastic bag containing marijuana inside a Honda Civic found to be registered to Yesenia Nunez, 47. She later returned to the vehicle, claiming she had been present earlier but refrained from driving due to drinking alcohol. Officers informed her of the marijuana in plain view, which provided probable cause for a search.
During questioning, Nunez admitted to owning the marijuana but did not have a medical marijuana card, said reports. Further search of the vehicle led to the discovery of a large plastic bag filled with a blue powdery substance. Nunez claimed it was laundry detergent given to her by a friend.
Field tests indicated the blue powder contained fentanyl weighing about 2.6 pounds. Nunez was arrested and charged with trafficking in fentanyl over 28 grams.
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analysis of article text
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prohibitionist
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prohibition_agency
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drugwar_propaganda
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legalization
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drug_reformer
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reform_referenda
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cannabis
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stimulant
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narcotic
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hallucinogen
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incarceration/prison mentioned? yes .
propaganda analysis
| st:0.01 fo:0 s:0 d:2.14 c:0.01 db:0.295 a:0.55 m:0.22 t:3.42 (f) |
text of article used for CRITICAL ANALYSIS, under FAIR USE provisions of the Copyright Act of 1976, 17 U.S.C. § 107, et al.
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(video)
EXP - explicit prohibition propaganda (explicit_propaganda)
GRP - hated group (propaganda_theme1)
MAD - madness, violence, illness (propaganda_theme2)
SOC - survival of society (propaganda_theme3)
USE - gateway, use is abuse (propaganda_theme4)
KID - children (propaganda_theme5)
WAR - demonize, war, epidemic (propaganda_theme6)
TOT - total prohibition (propaganda_theme7)
DIS - dissent opposed (propaganda_theme8)
