Man charged with vehicular homicide after 18-year-old found dead in Miami-Dade canal
A man has been arrested and charged with vehicular homicide, months after an 18-year-old woman was discovered dead in a canal.
According to police, she was on a motorcycle with him before the crash that sent them airborne.
In the arrest affidavit, investigators say 24-year-old Ivan Leal Ayola was driving a motorcycle with several people on it when he decided to flee from officers.
He then crashed into a car, resulting in 18-year-old Angelina Plasencia's death. Two other women were sent to the hospital in critical condition.
"You were arrested for one count of the vehicular homicide in a reckless manner. This is from September 14 of 2025," said Miami-Dade circuit judge Mindy Glazer.
He appeared before a Miami-Dade judge on Thursday, months after police say he was driving a motorcycle with three passengers on it.
"I don't understand how you can get four people on a motorcycle," said a prosecutor during the bond hearing.
In the arrest affidavit, it says Leal Ayola was on the bike with Plasencia and two other females traveling eastbound on the northwest 58th street and the 826.
Doral police officers spotted the motorcycle, which they say had just been involved in a hit-and-run crash.
When officers tried to pull the bike over, they said the driver took off with the three passengers.
Eventually, investigators say he ran a red light and collided with a Buick on Northwest 72nd Avenue, sending everyone airborne and Plasencia into a nearby canal.
"He caused a crash that resulted in the death of Ms. Angelina Plasencia. There's probably calls for vehicular homicide. He doesn't even have a motorcycle endorsement. He shouldn't be riding a motorcycle. He's fleeing from the police. I don't know why he isn't charged with fleeing," said Gazer.
Leal Ayola's mother appeared in court and asked the judge to appoint a public defender.
The judge gave him a bond of $15,000, which he has posted, and ordered him to surrender all his travel documents.