A Bronx woman was drag racing against other vehicles at a high rate of speed on the Whitestone Expressway when she caused a fatal collision that killed a 62-year-old Uber passenger in 2023.
Melissa Rodriguez-Lopez, 29, of Kossuth Avenue in the Van Cortland Park section, pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the first degree in Queens Supreme Court Wednesday to driving faster than 120 miles per hour when she slammed into the rear of the ride-share vehicle near Harvey Park in Whitestone in the early morning hours of May 27, 2023.
She admitted she fled the scene with the other drag racers and later reported her vehicle stolen in a failed attempt to avoid arrest.
“This defendant was driving at speeds of 123 miles per hour while racing when she plowed her Lexus into the rear of an Uber and killed the passenger,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said. “After causing the fatal collision, Melissa Rodriguez-Lopez then walked into a New York City Police Department precinct and claimed that her vehicle was stolen.”
According to the charges, at around 3 a.m. on May 27, Rodriguez-Lopez was driving a 2015 Lexus RC350 with personalized license plates northbound on the Whitestone Expressway with a friend, Marisol Cruz, in the passenger seat. While nearing the Whitestone Bridge, she hit the back of a Toyota Corolla driven by Manishanker Roy, 43, an Uber driver who was transporting Steven Spaulding, 62, of Brooklyn. Records from the Lexus indicate the car, which was registered to Rodriguez-Lopez, was going approximately 123 mph within seconds of the collision, and the force of the impact caused extensive damage to both cars, including the deployment of the defendant’s airbags. Rodriguez-Lopez left the scene of the crash in another drag racer’s vehicle. She did not identify herself to the Uber driver or notify police at the time of the collision.
Later that morning, Rodriguez-Lopez made a report at the 52nd Precinct in her Bronx neighborhood that her car had been stolen and claimed she was with a friend the entire day. The charges state that DNA evidence gathered during the investigation disproved that. Body-worn camera footage shows that she had injuries to her arm consistent with an airbag deploying. Cruz sustained injuries to her lower leg and knee. Vehicle data from the Lexus provided investigators with the speed at the time of the crash.
Roy and Spaulding were taken to New York-Presbyterian Queens Hospital in Flushing. Roy had significant injuries to his neck and body, and Spaulding had numerous spinal fractures and suffered a stroke following emergency surgery. He died on June 10.
“Sadly, the family of Steven Spaulding will have to live with the consequences of this defendant’s actions for the rest of their lives,” Katz said. “We hope that this plea helps Mr. Spaulding’s family and friends as they continue to mourn his loss.”
Rodriguez-Lopez pleaded guilty before Queens Supreme Court Justice Michael Aloise, who indicated he will sentence her on Jan. 28 to 18 years in prison.
