Florida man with seizures defied doctors before fatal NJ crash

🔴 Florida man found guilty in fatal New Jersey crash

🔴 He shouldn't have been driving, authorities said

🔴 Victim was killed on a quiet residential street

PATERSON — A man from Orlando faces 10 years in prison for killing a man in a crash after ignoring a doctor's advice not to drive, according to authorities.

On Monday, a Passaic County jury found Alvin Mootoo guilty of second-degree reckless vehicular homicide/death by auto and assault by auto, a disorderly persons offense.

His convictions followed a lengthy trial that started on April 7, according to the Passaic County Prosecutor's Office.

The 52-year-old Mootoo was responsible for a Jan. 2, 2019 crash that killed Jorge Pena-Mesa, prosecutors said.

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High-speed crash

Authorities said Mootoo drove a black Buick SUV down East 24th Street in Paterson at 55 mph. The speed limit for the residential street is 25 mph.

Mootoo ran a stop sign at 18th Avenue and hit another vehicle. His SUV flipped onto its side and kept going.

As it slid on its side, the SUV hit 31-year-old Jorge Pena-Mesa. He was thrown under a nearby van.

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Pena-Mesa was pronounced dead early the next morning at the hospital.

Prosecutors said that Mootoo had been experiencing seizures in the year leading up to the fatal crash.

Doctors had advised Mootoo not to drive because of the seizures, prosecutors said.

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