Teen gets prison in DUI crash that killed mother of 3

A man who admitted to driving impaired before a fiery crash that killed a Las Vegas mother of three was sentenced Monday to 28 to 72 months in prison.

District Judge Erika Ballou imposed the sentence on Yonas Nerea, 19, as part of his deal to plead guilty to driving under the influence resulting in death, according to his defense lawyer Lance Maningo.

Nerea also agreed to pay restitution to the three daughters of the victim, 43-year-old Andrea Nicole Robles, according to his Jan. 23 plea agreement filed in District Court.

Robles died while her car burned at the scene of the collision on Flamingo Road at Lindell Road on Nov. 26.

Nerea, whose driver’s license had been revoked, was behind the wheel of a Hyundai Sonata heading down West Flamingo at an “excessive speed” at about 3:45 a.m. when he smashed into a Dodge Dart driven by Robles, according to the Metropolitan Police Department.

The impact sent Robles’ car into a metal utility pole and moments later, the Dodge and the Hyundai burst into flames, police reported.

Police officers were able to pull Nerea to safety but could not remove Robles, who was trapped inside her car as it became fully engulfed in flames, police said.

Nerea admitted to officers that he had consumed tequila and marijuana prior to the crash, police reported.

The defendant opted to admit guilt even though the blood alcohol level measured in his system after the crash was only .03, lower than Nevada’s legal limit of .08, and the amount of marijuana was also low, Maningo said.

“He wanted to take responsibility, and he was very remorseful for what happened, and so he entered a guilty plea,” the lawyer said.

The next hearing related to the case is July 24, when Robles’ daughters are set to make a formal request for Nerea to pay them an amount of money as restitution related to the loss of their mother, Maningo said.

“Our mom was an amazing person, who loved very hard and went above and beyond to make sure each one of us felt loved!,” Robles’ 27-year-old daughter Briana wrote on her mother’s GoFundMe page. “She was like that to everyone really.”

The fundraising effort for Robles, started on Nov. 29, had received $4,050 in donations as Tuesday, short of the stated goal of $10,000.

Contact Jeff Burbank at jburbank@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0382. Follow him @JeffBurbank2 on Twitter.