ORLANDO, Fla. _ A 25-year-old Sorrento woman has been charged with DUI/manslaughter in the death of a motorcyclist, whom she identified as her boyfriend, an arrest report shows.
Arizbet Vazques Contreras told a Florida Highway Patrol investigator she was the girlfriend of the crash victim, Jason Sasser, 37, and was driving the Ford Explorer that crashed into his motorcycle, which was stopped nine months ago at a new traffic signal on State Road 46.
Both were coming from a bar, troopers said.
Sasser, a father of two and owner of Last Minute Moves in Mount Dora, had texted his wife that he was on his way home about 30 minutes before the crash.
Troopers said the Explorer pushed Sasser's motorcycle into a car also waiting for the red light to change.
The crash report listed Contreras' blood alcohol level at 0.14 percent, greater than the 0.08 percent threshold at which Florida law presumes a motorist to be impaired.
According to the FHP report, Contreras told troopers she had been drinking alcohol prior to the crash, which occurred at S.R. 46 and State Road 453.
A trooper asked her to submit to a blood draw, citing her slurred speech and other indications she may have been impaired.
Drivers convicted of DUI/manslaughter typically receive a prison sentence ranging from four to 15 years, FHP Lt. Kim Montes said.
Contreras turned herself in to the Lake County Jail on Monday and was released an hour later after posting $12,500 bond.
She was charged with DUI/manslaughter, driving under the influence of alcohol and careless driving.
On her Facebook page, Sasser's wife, Kim, posted a letter to "the drunk driver that killed my husband" and described April 1, 2018, as the most devastating day she had ever experienced.
"The surreal reality of being a widow has torn me apart and left me gasping for air. Every day I'm reminded in some way of my husband's absence," the social-media post read. "Your actions of drunk driving ended my husband's life and created a giant void that our family and friends will never be able to fill. Your careless behavior caused the end of a loving marriage ...
"I hope you never have to explain to your child that Daddy is in heaven or hear them cry out for him desperate and confused."
Kim Sasser said Wednesday that she was unaware of a relationship between her husband and Contreras. The Sassers, who married in 2015, had recently returned from a family vacation in Gatlinburg, Tenn.
Contreras has not yet entered a plea in the case, according to records on the Lake County Clerk of Courts website.
