Witnesses Sought In Lakeland Crash That Killed Driver, 2 Children

LAKELAND, FL — Lakeland police are seeking witnesses to a crash on Monday in which a man and two children were killed.

On Sept. 11 at 7:46 p.m., officers were dispatched to the 900 block of Kathleen Road for a traffic crash involving two vehicles. At the scene, officers discovered that a 2015 red Cadillac SUV with five occupants had collided with a 2016 black Dodge Challenger with one occupant.

The Lakeland Police Department, Polk County Fire Rescue and the Lakeland Fire Department arrived on the scene to begin life-saving measures.

A woman passenger in the Cadillac, Mavaria Carter, 33, of Lakeland, was declared dead at the scene. The man driving the Cadillac and three children passengers were thrown from the SUV. They were taken to Lakeland Regional Health where two of the children, a 6-year-old girl and a 13-year-old boy, both of Lakeland, died.

The driver of the Cadillac, Jeremy Felton, 30, of Lakeland, and the third child, a 14-year-old girl sustained critical injuries.

The occupants of the Cadillac were all family members.

The driver of the Challenger, Jeremiah Rivera, 20, of Lakeland, was taken to Tampa General Hospital in stable condition.

Based on information gathered in the investigation, the Cadillac was traveling south on Kathleen Road and entered the left turn lane, preparing to turn left onto Quincy Street.

At the same time, the Challenger was traveling north on Kathleen Road in the outside lane. The driver of the Cadillac made a left turn, crossing the path of the Challenger and crashing. The Cadillac rotated in a northeast direction and struck a utility pole where it came to rest. The Challenger came to final rest in a grassy area on the east side of the road just north of the Cadillac. It appears that the driver and children in the Cadillac and the driver of the Challenger were not wearing seatbelts.

The roadway was shut down for approximately four hours while the scene was processed.

Anyone with information regarding the crash is asked to contact Traffic Crash Investigator Officer Camillo Almeida at Camillo.almeida@lakelandgov.net.