An Instagram model accused of killing two while allegedly driving high on “pink cocaine” is shown fleeing the scene of the deadly crash in a newly released video.
Maecee Marie Lathers, 25, was driving under the influence on a suspended license in downtown Miami when she killed two men in a silver Suzuki, Abraham Molina and Jesus Robio, as they were on their way to work.
A third passenger, Juana Hernandez, Molina’s fiancée, was injured and miraculously survived. Around 7 am on August 10, the self-described “influencer” ran a red light and slammed her white Mercedes into a black Range Rover, which then careened into the Suzuki.
Police reportedly said she was traveling at about 57 mph on North Miami Avenue, pressing her foot on the accelerator at “100 percent,” causing her car’s speed to reach 78 mph at the point of impact.
The spooky video obtained by NBC6 begins just moments before the horrific crash and shows the Mercedes speeding down the street into the intersection. The footage then cuts to a woman identified as Lather by police, wavering unsteadily as she walks down the street away from the crash site with her red hoodie pulled all the way up over her head.
At one point, she is seen crouched down on the sidewalk, seemingly sick or disoriented, before she turns around and stumbles back in the direction she came from, walking alongside morning joggers.
The model, who originally hails from New York, left the scene without providing aid or calling 911, but bystanders later confronted her, reported the news outlet, citing arrest records. When police arrived, they found Lathers vomiting on the street.
This is not the first time a disturbing video has emerged in connection to the crash. In police bodycam footage, Lathers is shown lying in the street topless and disoriented while being detained by two officers before being loaded into an ambulance. The three crushed cars are visible in the background. At one point, she let out a wild scream and told officers, “My name is Mercedes! I’m from the future, a crystal ball.”
The male officer asked her, “Awesome, amazing. Are you on drugs?”
Though her response is not audible, the officer can be heard confirming that she said “tuci,” a ketamine-based party drug that comes in a pink powder form and is commonly known as “pink cocaine.” A toxicology report later confirmed her statement and noted a variety of drugs were in her system, reported NBC6.
Lather was given Narcan, an overdose-reversal drug, and claimed to have no memory of what happened just 12 hours after the crash, a Miami detective said in court.
After her arrest on Aug. 11, the influencer pleaded not guilty to charges of vehicular homicide, reckless driving, driving on a suspended license, and leaving the scene of a crash. She was initially granted bond and placed on house arrest with a GPS tracker.
But after the toxicology report allegedly confirmed that drugs were in her system, prosecutors added two counts of DUI manslaughter to her existing charges. At her latest bond hearing on Sept. 16, Lathers’ defense attorneys asked again for house arrest, but this time, she was denied.
As Judge Teresa Pooler ordered her back to jail, Lathers looked visibly shaken, rocking back and forth with her head held low in a video from WPLG Local 10.
“I think she’s extremely dangerous,” said Pooler. “As much as I respect house arrest, if someone wants to go they can go. It’s a simple matter of cutting that bracelet off and leaving.”
Her trial is set to begin in November. In Florida, DUI manslaughter charges carry a maximum sentence of 15 to 30 years in prison.
