Fort Myers man faces DUI manslaughter charges in fatal wrong-way crash

A Fort Myers man faces two counts of DUI manslaughter after he drove the wrong way on a Collier County road and collided with a van, killing two women.

Lukasz Ryszka, 43, also faces one count each of DUI serious injury and DUI property damage. He is currently in the Collier County Jail; a mug shot has not been made available.

The two Naples women died after the Ryszka’s truck collided with their van late Saturday, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. Troopers say Ryszka was driving south in the northbound lanes of Livingston Road, near Golden Gate Parkway, when he collided with the van, which was carrying four people.

The van’s 25-year-old driver and a 26-year-old passenger were killed. Two other women in the van, ages 24 and 25, suffered serious injuries, as did Ryszka. All three were taken to the hospital, where Ryszka was later arrested.

Flowers and candles now line Livingston Road. A memorial to honor Ana Marie Gutierrez, 26 and China Mozo, 25.

“We are responding to a patient 25-year-old female who was hit in a head-on collision currently unresponsive this evening,” said the radio calls. These calls are from Saturday night and only scratch the surface. Guitierrez and Mozo are dead, because of a wrong-way driver.

“We see the domino effect that happens lives are ruined. Family members are lost and they can’t get those family members back,” said Lieutenant Greg Bueno with Florida Highway Patrol.

His arrest report states his blood alcohol content was .272, which is over three times the legal limit.

The FHP says all four women were wearing seatbelts when the crash happened, shortly before 11:30 p.m on Saturday.

Bueno says this was absolutely preventable. “This entire tragedy was preventable. It requires all of us when driving a motor vehicle to be responsible, to be sober and to be 100 percent focused on the task at hand which is driving,” said Lt. Bueno.