After 7-Car DWI Pileup That Killed His Passenger, Driver Sentenced: DA

RIVERHEAD, NY — A Riverhead man was sentenced to 5 to 15 years in prison Tuesday after a drunk driving crash led to a seven-car pileup and the death of his passenger, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said.

Cristian Mendoza-Baquiax, 37, of Riverhead, was sentenced after pleading guilty in March to three counts of aggravated vehicular homicide, and other related charges, following a multi-vehicle crash on County Road 105 in Riverhead, which killed his passenger, Nelson Reyes-Muxin, 33, of Riverhead, and injured several others, the DA said.

According to court documents and the defendant’s admissions during his guilty plea allocution, on August 7, 2024, at about 6:15 p.m., Mendoza-Baquiax was driving a white 2010 Acura MDX northbound on County Road 105 in Riverhead when he drove around a northbound car at a high rate of speed into the opposite lane of travel, striking several vehicles.

In total, seven cars were involved in the crash, the DA said. Reyes-Muxin died as a result of his injuries, Tierney said.

Another passenger also in Mendoza-Baquiax’s vehicle sustained multiple fractures to his arm and a dislocated shoulder, for which he received treatment at Peconic Bay Medical Center, the DA said.

The driver of another vehicle involved in the crash sustained two fractured legs and a dislocated ankle, and had to be airlifted to Stony Brook University Hospital for medical treatment, Tierney said. In addition, two other individuals had to be transported to local hospitals for injuries that they sustained as a result of the crash, Tierney said.

Mendoza-Baquiax exhibited signs of intoxication and told responding officers that he had consumed six beers, the DA said. He was subsequently placed under arrest and consented to a blood draw upon request by police; toxicology results revealed a blood alcohol concentration of .21 percent — more than twice the legal limit of .08 percent, the DA said.

Mendoza-Baquiax was taken to Stony Brook University Hospital for treatment of injuries he sustained from the crash; a sample of Mendoza-Baquiax ‘s blood taken by hospital staff upon his admission was also seized pursuant to a search warrant, the DA said. Subsequent toxicology results of that sample, taken at an earlier time than the sample taken by police, revealed that he had a .25 percent blood alcohol content — more than three times the legal limit, the DA said.

Tierney said that on March 11, Mendoza-Baquiax pleaded guilty before Acting Supreme Court Justice Steven Pilewski to charges, including"
• Three counts of aggravated vehicular homicide, Class B felonies;
• One count of second-degree manslaughter, a Class C felony;
• Two counts of second-degree assault, Class D felonies;
• One count of aggravated driving while intoxicated, a Class E felony; and
• Two counts of third-degree assault, Class A misdemeanors.

Mendoza-Baquiax was represented by the Legal Aid Society.

"This sentencing sends out the message that, here in Suffolk County, we will not tolerate decisions that turn vehicles into deadly weapons," Tierney said.