A British mother and her two daughters have been killed in a fatal car crash in New York.
London-born Natasha Saada, 34, and her daughters Diana, eight, and Deborah, five, were struck by an Audi as they walked home after visiting a synagogue during Shabbat at approximately 1pm on Saturday.
Ms Saada’s four-year-old son, Philip, remains in critical condition following the collision on Ocean Parkway in Midwood, Brooklyn.
New York Police Department arrested 32-year-old Miriam Yarimi after a preliminary investigation determined that she was operating the 2023 Audi A3.
The blue Audi was traveling northbound on Ocean Parkway, at the intersection of Quentin Road, when it collided with a 2023 Toyota Camry, driven by a 63-year-old man travelling westbound on Quentin Road.
The Camry was struck at the rear bumper and pushed aside by the Audi as it entered Ocean Parkway.
The Audi continued on the road and struck Ms Saada and her three children before it flipped over with its bumper detached and front door crumpled.
The drivers of the Audi and Camry and the latter’s four passengers - three boys aged four, five and 12, and a 35-year-old man - were transferred to NYU Langone Hospital, Brooklyn in stable condition.
The police confirmed Ms Yarimi was driving on a suspended driving licence.
She has been charged with three counts of second degree manslaughter, three counts of criminally negligent homicide, four counts of second degree assault.
She also faces charges for reckless driving, aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle and failing to yield right on a red light, as well as two speeding offences.
The bodies of Ms Saada and her two daughters, part of the Orthodox Jewish community, were flown to Israel and buried on Monday in Jerusalem.
Rabbi Yitzchak Schochet, of Mill Hill Synagogue, attended the funeral with Ms Saada’s parents.
He told Jewish News: “The whole community is grief-stricken. Natasha grew up in Mill Hill and is fondly remembered by many.
“They are a beautiful family and we are all mourning along with them.”
Mayor Eric Adams described the car accident as a “tragic, tragic accident of Shakespearean proportions”.
“This is extremely concerning and painful, not only to the city of New York in general, but specifically to a very close-knit community. A mother going for a simple stroll on a sunny day was struck and killed.”
Jessica Tisch, the NYPD commissioner, said Ms Yarimi had a record of dozens of traffic violations.
“Speed certainly may have been a factor,” she said. “This was a horrific tragedy caused by someone who shouldn’t have been on the road.”
An investigation remains ongoing into the incident.
