MINEOLA, NY – Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly announced today the arraignment of Elvin Maradiaga Ortiz, a 33-year-old Hempstead resident, on multiple charges. These charges include Manslaughter in the Second Degree and Vehicular Manslaughter in the Second Degree, among others, stemming from a February incident where he allegedly drove drunk and crashed into a pole, resulting in one fatality and another injury.
Ortiz, who pleaded not guilty, was arraigned by Judge Christopher Quinn and is due back in court on July 18, 2024. He faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted.
The crash occurred early in the morning on February 24, 2024, on Jerusalem Avenue in Uniondale. Ortiz’s vehicle, a 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee, reportedly veered off the road, struck a pole, and flipped over. The backseat passenger, 35-year-old Alex Banegas Figueroa, was left unconscious and later pronounced dead at Nassau University Medical Center on March 1, 2024.
