JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Jacksonville man pleaded guilty Monday to vehicular homicide in the 2023 wrong-way crash that left an 18-year-old Creekside High School graduate dead, according to a release from State Attorney Melissa Nelson.
Ariel Monteagudo, 40, was arrested by the United States Marshals Fugitive Task Force in November 2023, nearly six months after causing the head-on crash that left Trenton Stewart with fatal injuries.
Around 1 a.m. on May 9, 2023, Stewart was driving eastbound on Old St. Augustine Road. His family told First Coast News he was out delivering food through DoorDash to earn extra cash.
At the same time, Monteagudo was driving the wrong way, over 100 mph in a 45-mph zone. He crashed head-on with Stewart's vehicle, which flipped and crashed into a tree 138 feet from the crash site, the release states.
The Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department crews had to cut through Stewart's vehicle in order to remove him from the wreckage.
Both Stewart and Monteagudo suffered injuries in the crash and were taken to the hospital. Stewart died at the hospital, and Monteagudo was intubated.
Stewart was a graduate of Creekside High School and a member of the Stetson University football team. He was named to the Fall 2022 Pioneer Football League Academic Honor Roll.
The release states that Monteagudo negotiated a plea, and he faces between eight to 12 years in the Florida State Prison follwed by probation. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
Monteagudo has been charged with vehicular homicide before. He spent 10 years in prison for that charge, among others, in Broward County between 2001 and 2002.
