John Jefferson
Left: Joshua Montero (Lake County Jail). Right: Asher Lepping (GoFundMe).
Police in Florida arrested a 19-year-old driver for allegedly under the influence after he struck and killed a 2-year-old boy riding a tricycle on a cul-de-sac in a gated community.
Joshua Aidan Montero is facing a charge of DUI manslaughter, the Tavares Police Department said. According to a probable cause arrest affidavit obtained by Law&Crime, a family was playing outside their home in the Oak Bend subdivision in Tavares, about 40 miles northwest of Orlando, around 7:15 p.m. Monday. The 2-year-old boy, Asher Lepping, was out in the cul-de-sac riding a blue tricycle when his father noticed a Toyota Tacoma speeding down the street. Asher’s dad yelled at the truck’s driver to slow down but he kept going, speeding into the cul-de-sac and striking the boy, the affidavit said.
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“The truck struck the child and appeared to drag the child and bicycle a few feet before the truck came to rest based on the apparent blood marks in the roadway,” the affidavit said.
It appeared the front tire of Montero’s truck “completely ran over” Asher, his mother later told cops.
Asher’s parents and neighbors rushed to his aid, conducting CPR before first responders arrived. They rushed him to the hospital but doctors pronounced him dead.
Montero got out of the truck after hitting the boy and sat on the sidewalk.
“While standing with Joshua on the sidewalk, the strong odor of alcohol emitted from him as he sat there and spoke with me,” cops wrote.
The drive was wearing only a swimsuit, the affidavit said. Montero had bloodshot and glassy eyes, per officers. He also was “repeatedly itching/wiping his nose and repeatedly sniffing,” the affidavit said. Police took Montero into custody on the DUI manslaughter charge. Montero allegedly gave two breath samples showing blood alcohol content levels of .062 and .057. The legal limit to drive is .08, but any alcohol allegedly in Montero’s system is illegal because he is underage.
Cops also believe the alcohol level was higher when he struck the boy.
Montero apparently made statements while en route to the jail but those are redacted from the arrest affidavit.
A neighbor started a GoFundMe on behalf of Asher’s mother.
“Friends and family, a wonderful mom and neighbor lost her precious little boy yesterday evening — all because a driver chose to show no respect for our quiet gated community and the precious children that live here,” the fundraiser said.
Montero is at the Lake County Jail without bond. He has a court date scheduled for Sept. 25.
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