A preteen boy crossing Fallowfield Avenue with his father in downtown Charleroi was struck by a speeding red 2016 Chevrolet Cruze on Sunday, August 23, and left with serious head and arm injuries after the driver fled the scene. The child was first rushed to Penn Highlands Mon Valley Hospital before being airlifted to UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, the region's primary pediatric trauma center, for further treatment.
The crash happened around 2:30 p.m. at the intersection of Fallowfield Avenue and Third Street, according to the Observer-Reporter. Police identified the fleeing vehicle after a juvenile witness recorded its Indiana license plate number, and officers corroborated that footage using nearby municipal surveillance cameras, allowing investigators to move quickly on a case that otherwise could have gone cold. The driver, 29-year-old Yorgelis Alexandra Matos-Bravo, ultimately returned to the scene after her brothers urged her to surrender, officials said, and police documented handprints along with a significant dent on the vehicle's hood, forensic evidence tying the car directly to the impact.
Charges Pile Up as Case Moves Through Court
Charleroi Regional Police charged Matos-Bravo with felony aggravated assault involving a victim younger than 13, a charge that applies under Pennsylvania law when the victim is under 13 and the defendant is 18 or older, according to the Mon Valley Independent. She also faces charges of recklessly endangering another person, an accident involving damage to a vehicle or property, careless driving, reckless driving, speeding, and disorderly conduct, per WTAJ. Matos-Bravo allegedly admitted to hitting the child, the station reported.
Matos-Bravo was arraigned before Magisterial District Judge Eric Porter and remanded to the Washington County Correctional Facility after failing to post $25,000 cash bail, as reported by the Daily Wire. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for September 3. Under Pennsylvania's Vehicle Code, leaving the scene of an accident involving injury requires mandatory stopping and rendering of aid, and fleeing a crash resulting in serious bodily injury carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 90 days imprisonment and a $1,000 fine upon conviction, according to Munley Law.
Immigration Status Draws Federal Attention
WTAJ reported that Matos-Bravo is a Venezuelan resident being held in a Pennsylvania jail, and that ICE has filed a detainer against her, according to the Department of Homeland Security. DHS said Matos-Bravo entered the United States through Texas in July 2022 and was released into the country at that time. The station also reported that Illinois had issued her a driver's license.
Illinois has allowed non-citizens without a Social Security number to obtain standard four-year driver's licenses marked “Federal Limits Apply” since Public Act 103-0211 took effect on July 1, 2024, replacing the state's earlier Temporary Visitor Driver's License program, according to WTTW. Applicants must show a year of Illinois residency, valid identification, and insurance, and pass driving exams to qualify. DHS and ICE have asked Pennsylvania officials to keep Matos-Bravo detained, and Secretary Markwayne Mullin issued a statement tying the crash to federal border policy and Illinois's licensing law, calling the incident “completely avoidable.”
An ICE detainer, formally known as Form I-247A, is an administrative request asking local correctional facilities to notify federal immigration authorities before releasing an inmate and to hold that person for up to 48 hours so ICE agents can take custody, according to TribLIVE. That means the detainer lodged against Matos-Bravo could put her into federal custody if she posts bond or resolves her state charges. Charleroi sits along the Monongahela River in Washington County, roughly 25 miles south of Pittsburgh, and is policed by the Charleroi Regional Police Department.
