The parents of six young children were killed in a head-on collision with a wrong-way driver fleeing police while returning home from a date night in Michigan.
Ryan Ambrosio, 45, and his wife Jen, 43, of Farmington Hills, were killed by Angel Melendez Ortiz, 35, when their SUV crashed around 1:30 a.m. on January 6. He was killed instantly when he collided with a stolen pickup truck driven by a man. WDIV reported.
Melendez-Ortiz was fleeing from police in a 2006 Ford Super Duty truck when he collided with a police cruiser and crashed onto the northbound Lodge Freeway in Southfield at more than 100 mph.
He exited the highway at Telegraph Road, turned off his headlights, made a U-turn and reentered the northbound lanes of the Lodge, where he drove the wrong way, according to news outlets.
The suspect then crashed into Ambrosios' GMC Terrain near Civic Center Drive.
The couple died instantly, leaving behind six children between the ages of 2 and 9, WDIV reported.
Melendez-Ortiz and her passenger, identified as a 29-year-old Detroit woman, were hospitalized with serious injuries, the newspaper said.
He was charged with two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of first-degree fleeing and eluding police, two counts of reckless driving causing death, and two counts of driving a vehicle with a suspended, revoked or unauthorized license causing death.
A GoFundMe page for the couple's children had raised more than $612,000 as of Tuesday morning.
The Ambrosios were “much loved by many of us. Their family, friends, church, and community organizations are reeling from this shocking loss,” fundraiser organizers wrote.
“The greatest impact of this tragedy has been (and will continue to be) on the six young children: Amelia, Maria Grace, Faustina, Benedict, Raphael and Julian. Ages 2 to 9 “And now they have to navigate life's ups and downs without their parents by their side,” they wrote.
In the update, they sought to reassure everyone that the children were being cared for.
“Although the Ambrosio children are now without their parents, they always have the presence and support of their extended family, ensuring that they are raised together in a safe and loving home,” organizers said. writing.
Melendez Ortiz, of Romulus, has pleaded not guilty and was given $1.5 million cash bail, prosecutors said. He is scheduled to return to court on January 24th.
“These were senseless deaths, and I authorized the highest possible charges for this crime,” Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald said in a statement. According to CBS Detroit.
“We will seek justice for these victims and their entire families, including their young children, and will hold this defendant accountable,” she added.
A spokeswoman for the public prosecutor's office said it was unusual for a driver to be charged with murder after a fatal crash, but it was appropriate in this case.
“This was a rare case where there was sufficient evidence,” the spokesperson said. told the Detroit Free Press..
The attorney said the case shows “an element of intentionality on the part of the defendant,” as the defendant turned off his car's headlights and was driving the wrong way.
