Family grieves after teens’ deadly crime spree in Fort Lauderdale

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Two teenage boys are facing charges in Broward County juvenile court for breaking into a home while the residents were sleeping and for later being involved in a fatal crash — while trying to get away from police in a stolen car.

Officers with the Fort Lauderdale Police Department followed the teens in the stolen white Mercedes-Benz that later collided with two vehicles early Sunday morning at the intersection of Oakland Park Boulevard and Northwest Ninth Avenue.

A 15-year-old driver, Jacory Flournoy, and a 13-year-old passenger, Jah’Kobe Bessent, fled, but deputies found them and arrested them, according to the Broward Sheriff’s Office. Detectives accused them of several car thefts in Fort Lauderdale.

Edras Lopez Esteban said his sister, who is pregnant, was injured in the crash. Another woman died at a nearby hospital. Authorities identified her as Maria Tellez-Vaderrabano, the mother of 15-year-old Samantha, 13-year-old Michael, and 12-year-old Yvonne.

Ad

“They took my sister’s life; they took their mom’s life. We want justice for my sister,” said Tellez-Vaderrabano’s half-sister Emily Feria.

Feria said she was already grieving another relative, Maria Armandina Zevallos Solis, who was killed in June after a bus ran her over in Fort Lauderdale.

Feria and Tellez-Vaderrabano’s children are asking the public for help to cover the cost of their mother’s funeral and shared a GoFundMe page.

“She was a positive role model. She always showed us that working hard can get you where you want to be,” Tellez-Vaderrabano’s 13-year-old son Michael said.

Feria said she wants Broward County prosecutors to charge the teenagers as adults. Prosecutors said they are considering it.

Ad