A Bellport woman pleaded guilty for her role in a fatal motor vehicle crash that took the life of a volunteer firefighter.
On the evening of June 10, Maria Guallpa-Bonilla left her job on Medford Avenue in Patchogue. At approximately 10:47 p.m., she drove a blue 2001 Mercury Cougar westbound on East Main Street in Patchogue, without another licensed driver in the vehicle she was operating, as required by her permit restrictions.
As Guallpa-Bonilla made a left-hand turn to proceed southbound on Rider Avenue, she struck an eastbound motorcycle that was operated by Christopher Hlavaty, who had the right of way. After driving over Hlavaty’s body with the front and rear tires of the car, Guallpa-Bonilla left the scene without stopping or rendering aid to him and failed to report the collision to law enforcement. Hlavaty, 22, a volunteer firefighter from Hagerman Fire Department and an East Patchogue resident, later died as a result of the injuries he sustained from the crash.
Car parts found by law enforcement at the scene of the collision were determined to belong to a 2001 Mercury Cougar. Two days later, police located the vehicle in the driveway of her residence, allegedly covered with a tarp to prevent it from being observed by the authorities.
On October 16, Guallpa-Bonilla pleaded guilty to Leaving the Scene of an Incident Without Reporting, a Class D felony, before Supreme Court Justice, Timothy P. Mazzei. Under current New York State law, the maximum sentence that Guallpa-Bonilla faces on the top count is 2-1/3 to seven years in prison. The Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office recommended Guallpa-Bonilla be sentenced to two to six years in prison.
“This defendant’s actions in leaving a young man to die on the road, after striking and running over his body, were callous and unconscionable,” said Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney. “Ms. Guallpa Bonilla was more concerned about the consequences that she would face, rather than rendering aid to Christopher Hlavaty. Motorcyclists have the right to drive on the streets in Suffolk County without having to worry that they are going to get struck by a vehicle and left to die. We hope this plea will give Mr. Hlavaty’s family and loved ones some small measure of justice.”
Guallpa-Bonilla is due back in court for sentencing on December 4.