(WSVN) - A young woman was left unable to walk or talk after a horrific motorcycle crash that has left her family devastated, and they believe police should have done more. 7’s Heather Walker investigates.
This is the Marian Sanchez Cuevas who people know and love.
Gabriel Varona, friend: “The person who would bring in the energy the second she came storming through that door was her.”
An energetic, athletic, outgoing 26-year-old, who graduated from Florida International University in 2022 with a master’s degree in finance.
Sahily Cuevas, mother: “Happy, she always was happy. The daughter that everybody wants to have.”
We spoke to Marian’s parents, Sahily and Eric, outside Jackson Memorial Hospital. It’s where they have spent countless hours at their daughter’s bedside for the past four months.
Eric Sanchez, father (translation): “Destroyed. I don’t have words to describe it.”
Sahily Cuevas: “The last four months, for us and the family, like, destructive. We don’t have life. Our life finished on September 24th.”
September 24th, 2023.
911 Caller: “A motorcyclist and his passenger just never made the turn, and just kept going straight, and they have slammed into the wall. They are both unconscious.”
Marian was the passenger.
Gwen Grayson, neighbor: “The motorcycle, you can see where it hit the tree there. The motorcycle went straight through these two signs.”
According to the crash report, a witness described the driver going “at a high rate of speed,” running a stop sign before hitting a curb in this Coconut Grove neighborhood.
911 Operator: “The police and the ambulance are on the way. They’re coming as fast as they can.”
911 Caller: “Listen, you’re not seeing what I saw, and you didn’t hear what I heard. This is bad.”
And it was bad. Marian had a portion of her skull removed to relieve pressure on her brain and was put in a medically-induced coma.
She has undergone 10 surgeries. Part of her leg was amputated, and she is not able to speak.
Sahily Cuevas: “I never heard in four months the word ‘mother,’ so imagine how we’re feeling.”
Marian’s friends and family are devastated, but they’re also determined to push the Miami Police Department for answers. They say the case has not been investigated properly, starting with the fact that the driver was never given a DUI test.
Gabriel Varona: “He was never tested at all, supposedly. That makes zero sense to me.”
Police listed Nicolas Araujo as the driver of the motorcycle. He is a rookie Miami-Dade County firefighter/EMT who was not on duty at the time.
The 28-year-old was injured but recovered — seen in a fire department video shopping for Christmas presents with children. Two months earlier, on the day of the crash, he was tailgating with a group of friends before the Dolphins game. In a picture with Marian, both had drinks in their hands.
Sahily Cuevas: “We have proof that they were drinking. It’s not fair. They were drinking. We have a lot of people that were in the tailgate.”
Marian’s close friend, who asked we not show her face, was at that tailgate.
Friend: “That morning, he was drinking, as was I. I can’t really speak on how much he was drinking, but I do know for a fact he was drinking socially.”
After the game, the group was driven in a rented van to a bar in Coconut Grove. Araujo rode his motorcycle there. He gave another woman a ride first, as she recorded on her cellphone.
Woman: “Another stop sign.”
You hear her say, “Another stop sign.”
Eric Sanchez, father (translation): “They can see in the background the speed he was going at that moment. How he ran through the stops.”
Marian got on his motorcycle just minutes later, and that’s when the crash happened. She and Araujo were both taken to the Ryder Trauma Center.
The family wants to know why he was not tested for alcohol.
Sahily Cuevas: “From my point of view, they didn’t investigate. They didn’t investigate.”
Miami Police tells 7 Investigates “…there was no physical evidence at the scene that indicated the driver was impaired, and “…they did not have any probable cause to ask for, or evidence, to obtain a warrant for a blood draw.”
We asked the department what else was done to investigate the circumstances that day. After we started asking questions, Marian’s parents were notified the detective wants to meet with them.
As they wait for answers, they also wait to see if Marian will ever recover.
Sahily Cuevas: “Only God, because she has too many damage in her brain. So, only God.”
So, for now, family and friends will continue to be Marian’s voice — because she doesn’t have one.
Marian is currently at JMH’s Rehabilitation Center, where they’re working to help her regain her ability to recognize people. Meanwhile, 7 Investigates will continue to push Miami Police for answers on this case.
CONTACT 7 INVESTIGATES:
305-627-CLUE
954-921-CLUE
7Investigates@wsvn.com
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