HOMESTEAD, Fla. — Dozens gathered in Homestead this weekend, 68 days after 24-year-old Albert Montoto was killed in a crash his family says was caused by a driver who ran a red light, as they called for criminal charges and greater accountability.
The rally took place at the intersection of Southwest 288th Street and South Dixie Highway, where loved ones said Montoto was ejected from a tow truck during the violent collision.
“Our family was devastated,” said Emily, Montoto’s sister. “You broke more than a law, you broke a family.”
Montoto’s mother, Sajay Montoto, sat near the spot where her son’s body landed as she spoke about the loss.
“I would do anything to change places with him,” she said. “He was loved. I was really proud of him.”
Family members said Montoto had just celebrated his 24th birthday on Valentine’s Day.
Two days later, they say, he and his brother-in-law were traveling in a red tow truck that had the green light when another tow truck ran a red light and caused the crash.
Montoto’s brother-in-law remains hospitalized, his family told Local 10’s Samiar Nefzi.
“He was planning on proposing this year,” said Yahily Calderin, Montoto’s girlfriend. “Instead of walking down an aisle, I had to walk into a funeral home.”
Calderin said she later found a love note Montoto had written and tattooed part of it on her forearm.
“What doesn’t it mean to me?” she said. “It’s the last ‘I love you’ I got from him.”
Montoto’s mother said she has been seeking justice since the crash.
“The day he died, I died with him,” she said. “Seeing my son on the floor — and today, I’m trying to do everything to get him justice.”
Family and friends held signs reading “Justice for Albert” and called on Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle to file charges against the driver they say caused the crash.
“It wasn’t an accident. It was a decision a person made,” said family friend Arasay Acosta.
Relatives said the driver has only received a traffic citation so far, which they argue is not enough.
“I don’t think a ticket is enough,” a family member said. “If I were to run a red light right now and hit someone, don’t I get arrested?”
Messages including “This is my son’s blood — where is my justice?” and “A red light is not an accident” were displayed on a fence near the crash site, which is now marked by teddy bears, flowers and posters.
“My son was loved. He was a good kid,” Sajay Montoto said. “Every room he entered, it was like the sun was coming in.”
Emily, Montoto’s younger sister, said they were especially close.
“He knew I loved him with everything in me,” she said. “We did everything together — our whole 20s.”
The family is also calling for stricter laws for drivers with multiple traffic violations.
The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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