Deadly Crash Closes Village Boulevard

Published on December 18, 2024

Date: December 18, 2024,                                                 TIME: 9:15 p.m.

PIO #24-12-5                                                                     WPBPD Case #2024-0020042

DEADLY CRASH CLOSES VILLAGE BOULEVARD

A West Palm Beach woman was killed when a teen driving a pickup truck struck her car Wednesday just before noon.

At 11:51 a.m. December 18, 911 callers reported a bad traffic crash at the intersection of Village Boulevard and Shenandoah Drive. The crash involved a 2015 Ford F150 pickup truck and a 2008 Lexus LS460. The woman driving the Lexus, 68-year-old Maureen Andrea Wheeler, of West Palm Beach, died on the scene. The teen driving the pickup, 15-year-old Rony Vicente-Bravo, also of West Palm Beach, suffered minor injures and was taken to Palm Beach Children’s Hospital at St. Mary’s Trauma Center where he was admitted for observation. Both vehicles sustained heavy damage.

Investigators have determined that Vicente-Bravo, driving the pickup truck alone, was southbound on Village Boulevard when the eastbound Lexus was attempting to turn left from Shenandoah Drive onto Village Boulevard. The pickup struck the driver’s side of the Lexus, causing it to rotate counter-clockwise, facing northbound in the southbound lane. The pickup came to rest southbound with the front left tire in the fog line, and the rest of the truck’s tires on the grass and sidewalk. Southbound Village Boulevard at Shenandoah Drive remained closed for several hours while traffic homicide investigators collected evidence and documented the scene.

Preliminarily, investigators believe speed was a contributing factor in the crash, and criminal charges are possible, pending the investigation.     

Report suspicious activity and send pictures and video directly to the West Palm Beach police 911 Communications Center and Strategic Intelligence Center through the free SaferWatch app, at www.SaferwatchApp.com. It is also available through Google Play for Android, and the Apple Store for iPhones. Always call 911 for life-threatening, or in-progress crimes.    

 This release by:

Mike Jachles/PIO

  12/18/24 2110