CLEVELAND, Ohio — A young woman set to graduate from college and get married in just weeks is now fighting to recover in a hospital bed after a crash that also killed a man.
The suspect, 22-year-old Zayd Alameen, was in a stolen SUV, a crime that happened minutes before the crash last Friday evening at W. 150th Street and Lorain Avenue.
RELATED: 1 dead, 4 injured in 5-vehicle crash involving stolen car on Cleveland's West Side
Divina Hendrickson and Randy Toombs hopped in a car and drove to Cleveland from Tennessee on Friday night.
Their hearts shattered at the sight of their youngest daughter, 22-year-old Payton Toombs.
“Not a good one. It’s heartbreaking,” Randy Toombs and Hendrickson said.
Their daughter was in the ICU with serious injuries to her leg and pelvis.
"From the waist down, waist up, she’s perfect,” Randy Toombs said.
The family says Payton, her fiancé, 23-year-old Maverick Marmol, who is out of the hospital but by her side, and their friend were in Cleveland for a cornhole tournament when their car and several others were hit.
Witnesses said the SUV was flying down the road.
"Probably about five to six minutes prior to the accident occurring is when the vehicle was taken,” Cleveland Police Sgt. Freddy Diaz said.
Alameen, of Las Vegas, is accused of stealing the GMC while it was left running in a driveway off W. 130th Street, about 20 blocks away.
The crash killed 54-year-old James Cook of Fairview Park, per the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner's office.
"It's a grim reminder that committing crimes never turns out good,” Diaz said.
Cody Richardson is Payton’s brother-in-law and works in law enforcement.
"I can’t say that it surprises me, what I’ve witnessed over the years in my line of work, but it’s disheartening to know something like this could have been prevented,” Richardson said.
The family says Payton and Maverick are set to marry in June.
"He looked over, and he had thought that she had passed away,” Richardson said.
Both attend the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She is about to graduate with a teaching degree, and he is attending the university for animal science.
"She really is the sweetest soul,” Richardson said.
"She doesn’t get to walk with her class, for me as a mom, that makes me sad because she’s worked her butt off for the last four years,” Hendrickson said.
Payton’s siblings and parents are with her now at MetroHealth. The family says she’s had one six-hour surgery to repair a broken femur and will need a seven-hour surgery on her pelvis and possibly a hip replacement.
The family is trying to convince her to push back the wedding, but she says she’s determined.
“She’s tough, she's the one raising Cain with us. Yeah, she’s just ready to heal,” Randy Toombs and Hendrickson said.
The suspect now awaits his next court date in jail.
"I’m not going to judge him, but definitely needs consequences. It's a humbling experience. I feel like I need to be praying for him as well,” Hendrickson said.
The suspect is in jail on a $50,000 bond on aggravated vehicular assault and aggravated vehicular homicide charges.
He is expected back in court next week.
