Woman accused of causing wrong-way head-on crash on Route 28 appears in court
A woman appeared in court on charges stemming from a head-on crash she allegedly caused after driving the wrong way on Route 28. At the time of the crash, she had eight children in her car.
31-year-old Fato Muya needed an interpreter to translate English into Swahili. The interpreter first translated for Magisterial District Judge Dan Konieczka as he read Muya’s charges. Muya faces 19 charges including three counts of second-degree endangerment of the children’s welfare, five counts of third-degree endangerment of the children’s welfare, two counts of recklessly endangering another person, three counts of accidents involving death or personal injury while not properly licensed, and multiple traffic summary charges.
Back in June, Muya allegedly drove the wrong way on Route 28 and crashed head-on into another car. During the preliminary hearing, the man and woman in the other car answered questions. Both described slowing down after seeing police lights on Route 28. That officer whose lights they saw was attempting to stop Muya as he saw her driving the wrong way into oncoming traffic. They both recall slowing down, coming around the bend and seeing headlights. The driver told Konieczka he couldn’t stop fast enough.
An ambulance took both of them to the hospital for broken bones. According to the criminal complaint, six of Muya’s eight children in the car with her were also taken to the hospital. The kids ranged in age from 11-months-old to 11 years old. According to a responding Shaler Township police officer, only the 11-month-old was restrained in a car seat. Muya told the officer that she “made a mistake” and “got confused” while following her GPS.
The complaint stated Muya didn’t appear to be under the influence of any drugs or alcohol. At the time of the crash, Muya had an expired permit and an invalid driver’s license.
Muya’s husband, Juma Mkomwa, is facing a charge related to letting her drive his car even though she didn’t have a license. His case was postponed for 90 days. During that time, Muya will go through the process of obtaining a driver’s license.
All of Muya’s charges were held for court. Her formal arraignment is scheduled for Oct. 19.
TRENDING NOW:
Former local teacher, youth sports coach accused of sexually assaulting several children Former local teacher, youth sports coach accused of sexually assaulting several children Man accused of sexually assaulting, strangling several women taken into custody VIDEO: Ohio man accused of stealing purses, using credit cards in Ross Township DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news
