A 61-year-old Valley Village man has been charged with three counts of murder for an alleged drunken driving crash that killed three street food vendors near the North Hollywood subway station Tuesday evening, officials said.
Ihor Demianenko faces life in prison if convicted after his Nissan Sienna jumped the curb on Lankershim Boulevard near Chandler Avenue and plowed into a series of blue and white tarps housing vendors who had been feeding Metro line commuters for years, according to a criminal complaint made public Friday. His blood alcohol level was more than three times the legal limit, according to a press release issued by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
Two other pedestrians were struck by the vehicle and one remains in serious condition, according to LAPD Capt. Mike Bland, the department’s chief spokesman. Demianenko remains hospitalized and was unable to appear in the Van Nuys courtroom Friday, Bland said.
The women who died in the crash were Francesca Krystine Esker, 39, Teodora De Jesus Villalobos, 57, and Maria Angelica Peck, 73, according to the prosecutor’s office.
“Once again, an impaired driver has left a trail of carnage on our Los Angeles streets. Among the victims of this horrific accident were street vendors who were simply trying to make a living when tragedy struck. My deepest condolences go out to the families of the three women who lost their lives, and I hope that the other two victims who were seriously injured make a full recovery,” said Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Nathan J. Hochman said in a statement.
Demianenko is expected to be arraigned on Monday. It was not immediately clear whether he had an attorney. He has never been convicted or charged with driving violations in California, according to state Department of Motor Vehicles records. He was involved in a car accident in 2024, records show.
Police said Demianenko was driving south on Lankershim at a “dangerous speed” around 6 p.m. Tuesday when his vehicle struck a row of street vendors who are normally parked outside the transit center that marks the end of the Metro B Line train and G Line bus extension to Chatsworth. The night of the crash, the car was visible on the sidewalk under a blue tarp, while coolers, cans of soda and displays of snacks the women usually sold were strewn about.
Area residents said the women who operated the row of food stands were beloved members of the community who had been selling hot dogs, tamales, coffee and snacks to commuters during rush hour for years.
LaDuke Warwick, 47, told the Times that an act of kindness from one of the women changed his life.
Warwick said he was homeless about five months ago and was sleeping on a nearby air vent when one of the women approached and told him to come with her.
“I haven’t seen you eat in three days,” he remembers telling her. She gave Warwick one of her hot dogs.
“Everyone in this area loved them,” Warwick said. “They were such gentle souls.”
On the night of the sinking, other vendors working in the area continued to sell their wares to the crowds of onlookers who arrived on the scene, hours after seeing their colleagues being mowed down.
“I’m just glad it’s not my family, but it still hurts,” said Kassandra Guzman, 12, as her father served a smash burger to someone across the street.
Times staff writer Fedor Zarkhim contributed to this report.
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