The man who troopers say was driving the wrong way in a violent I-95 crash that killed two sisters heading for their mother’s home in Pompano Beach was driving with a revoked license, state records show.
Meanwhile, a retired police officer who was among the first to arrive at the fiery crash scene said his inability to save the two young women who died “hurts my soul.”
Admerson Cleber Eugenio Vicente, of Jupiter, who turned 24 on Monday, wasn’t supposed to be behind the wheel of a car until 2020 because he was a “habitual traffic offender,” according to the Department of Highway Safety & Motor Vehicles.
Records show that in March, Vicente’s license had been revoked for five years. He was charged with a DUI in 2010 and twice accused of driving with a suspended license in 2014.
Brittany and Alexis Musumeci had visited Disney World and were returning to Pompano Beach on Saturday night when, according to the Florida Highway Patrol, their 2007 Toyota Matrix was struck, head-on in Martin County, by the 2006 Jeep Cherokee that Vicente was driving the wrong way.
Brittany, 23, a talented violinist and recent college graduate and her sister Alexis, 24, an Air Force staff sergeant, both died at the scene. The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, where Brittany Musumeci graduated in May, with honors, with a degree in violin performance, is holding a candlelight vigil Thursday night, according to her former professor.
Funeral services for the two sisters remain pending, according to Rebecca Ottman, a family friend.
Vicente was critically injured and transported to Lawnwood Regional Medical Center in Fort Pierce. The hospital would not comment on his condition on Wednesday.
Bryon Schimpf, 45, a retired officer from the Baltimore Police Department, was heading home to Palm Beach Gardens after a trip to Daytona Beach when he happened upon the crash scene.
He said he and his wife initially saw brake lights and vehicles swerving before seeing a large plume of smoke — likely from the impact of the two vehicles.
“We pulled up on it and I get out and run over to the girls’ car and I couldn’t see anybody in there, the car was so mangled,” Schimpf said. He said he was unable to open the passenger door and by the time he went to the other side of the vehicle, most of it was engulfed by flames.
“It went up quick,” Schimpf said. “I couldn’t get it opened. The heat got to the point where it was impossible. The window frame was the size of a breadbox, it was crushed, he said.
Schimpf said the sight of what happened was devastating, despite his 17 years as a cop.
“I just hope it was quick for them,” he said.
According to Schimpf, Vicente’s Jeep landed on top of the Toyota the two girls were in and he and another passer-by cut the seat belt off of the unconscious driver and pulled him out.
As of Wednesday, no charges related to the crash had been filed against Vicente and FHP’s investigation was continuing.
Staff researcher Barbara Hijek contributed to this report.
lhuriash@sunsentinel.com or 954-572-2008
