Driver who plowed into mom and kids had suspended license -  All the details

A horrific car crash in Brooklyn on Saturday claimed the lives of a mother and her two young daughters, struck down by a driver with a suspended license during a walk home from synagogue. Natasha Saada, 35, and her daughters Diana, 7, and Debra, 5, died in the collision, while Saada’s 4-year-old son, Phillip, remains in critical condition.

The driver, identified as Miriam Yarimi, 32, was behind the wheel of an Audi when it collided with a Toyota Camry Uber on Ocean Parkway near Quentin Road. The impact sent Yarimi’s vehicle careening into a crosswalk, where it struck the Saada family, according to NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch. “This was a horrific tragedy caused by someone who shouldn’t have been on the road,” Tisch said at a press conference at the scene. Yarimi, arrested but not yet charged as of early Sunday, has a documented history of reckless driving, with 20 speed-camera tickets, five red-light violations, and dozens of parking infractions since August 2023, totaling over $10,000 in fines, per the records site “How’s My Driving.”

The crash reverberated through the tight-knit neighborhood, where families had filled the streets after Sabbath services on a sunny day with temperatures reaching 80 degrees. “The bang I heard, it was like an earthquake,” a witness told the New York Post. “It went on for a good 30 seconds. It felt like the world stopped.” Photos from the scene captured the grim aftermath: children’s shoes scattered across the pavement, a victim’s legs protruding from a wrecked car, and a first responder weeping on his knees.

Saada’s husband was at home with their infant when the tragedy struck. A neighbor described the devastating moment of breaking the news: “He lost two out of four children in one day. Plus his wife.” Phillip, the surviving son, underwent successful surgery Saturday night. “The child will make it. The surgery was successful. All of Brooklyn is talking about it,” a family friend said, though adding, “The father will never be the same. His wife was his biggest support and she’s gone.”

Yarimi, a wigmaker known as “Ellie” with a vanity plate reading “WIGM8KER,” has a past marked by legal and financial turbulence. In 2023, she won a $2 million settlement from the NYPD in a lawsuit alleging she was sexually assaulted by an officer at age 14, court records show. Her social media portrays a lavish lifestyle, with posts flaunting a yellow Porsche and luxury vacations, contrasting sharply with her 93 traffic violations over recent years. The Uber driver, 62, and three passengers—two children and an adult—were hospitalized in stable condition.

Those violations include a ticket for speeding through a school zone in Brooklyn on Mar. 16, records showed. Since Aug. 2023, she has racked-up 20 speed-camera tickets and five red-light tickets, as well as dozens of parking infractions.

Police have not announced whether Yarimi will be charged in the fatal crash that killed a mother and her two children, ages 8 and 6.

Yarimi is also a mother of one — dedicating much of her Instagram page to sharing photos of the young girl who appears about the age of the Saturday’s victims.

Yarimi was placed under arrest, though charges had not been filed by early Sunday, sources said.

Mayor Eric Adams called the crash a tragedy of “Shakespearean proportions” at an unrelated event. “A mother going for a simple stroll on a sunny day was struck and killed. I cannot imagine the pain of the family,” he said.

Preparations are underway for the funeral procession of Natasha Sarah, Diana and Debra Saada.

Baruch Dayan HaEmet.

NY Post contributed to this article.