Relative arrested for chain-reaction crash that killed mother and child

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Authorities have arrested a teen driver after a chain-reaction crash on the LBJ Freeway in Garland that killed two of his relatives –- a 4-year-old girl and her 18-year-old mother.

Witnesses said a Ford Mustang was driving erratically around 11 p.m. Wednesday and stopped in the middle of the highway near Centerville Lane. Garland Police identified the driver of the Mustang as 17-year-old Adalberto Rivera.

An SUV that was behind it was able to avoid it, but a Saturn car was not. The Saturn crashed into both the SUV and the Mustang. Another car then slammed into the Saturn.

There were two adults in the Saturn with two children. Yene Rivera, 18, and Sophia Rivera, 4, were killed in the wreck. The male driver and a 2-year-old boy were seriously injured but are expected to recover.

“I could hear a baby crying and a mother and father in the front seat. I could see the baby’s feet sticking out from underneath the console. We had a couple of guys trying to pull the car apart,” said Stacie Salazar, who stopped to help pull the child from the wreckage.

Salazar said it was a group effort. Even some of the people who were involved in the crash were trying to help rescue the children. As strangers tried to pull the victims out, witnesses say three people in the Mustang that caused the wreck took off.

Police arrested Adalberto, an unlicensed driver, Thursday afternoon at a Southeast Dallas apartment complex. Investigators learned he is related to the victims.

Police identified the two other people in the Mustang as a 16-year-old girl and a 15-year-old boy, but they have not been charged.

Friends and loved ones are finding strength in Yene Rivera's final post on Facebook Tuesday night. “Thank you God for everything. Just always happy with your blessings," it read.

Adalberto is facing a felony charge for failure to stop and render aid.