‘I’m sorry’: Woman, 82, speaks out after she allegedly hit child with her car and fled

An elderly woman is speaking out Tuesday after she was accused of hitting a 7-year-old boy with her car and driving away, leaving the child in the hospital in critical condition.

It happened back on Jan. 10 in the 8200 block of Southwest 32nd Street. The boy’s mother, who wanted to remain anonymous, said she and her son were outside together playing on his electric scooter when a woman drove by and hit him, and then drove off.

“Had I not been outside, I probably would’ve found him dead or something,” the mother said. “I don’t understand how someone can hit a child and not stop.”

According to an arrest form, 82-year-old Karina Pubchara-Martinez was driving a silver Toyota Camry and hit the boy while the mother and her son were attempting to cross the street while he was riding an electric scooter.

In a wheelchair and straight jacket, Martinez appeared in bond court Tuesday, where a judge ordered her not to drive.

The arrest report stated that she admitted that she was operating the vehicle at the time of the crash and did not report the incident to the authorities.

“She didn’t even go home or call, nothing, nothing, she just continued with her life,” the boy’s mother said.

The arrest form also stated that when the boy’s mother called the police, and they arrived on scene, they found broken fragments of Martinez’s car, including the front bumper broken off in the road.

After bonding out of jail, Martinez told NBC6 she was going home after visiting her son.

Karina Pubchara-Martinez was arrested Monday on a charge of leaving the scene of a crash causing serious bodily injury, Miami-Dade jail records showed.

“I was passing the jail when they hit me, OK, and then I got afraid because my glasses were on my face and I run away and that’s very bad,” she said.

She said she was nervous, and that’s why she drove off – but knows that wasn’t OK.

“I pray for him…and I’m sorry for what happened,” Martinez said.

She said the mother and son did not stop when they should have.

“I was passing through and they didn’t stop when they’re supposed to stop and they hit me,” she said. “But I left, so I’m worse.”

The 7-year-old was taken to the Nicklaus Children’s Hospital in critical condition and suffered serious, bodily injuries, including a head injury, brain lesion and broken femur.

“He has a long road ahead of him,” the mother said. “He can’t do the normal things he does for I don’t know how long, and the most important is the head. He needs to have an MRI and continually monitor his head.”

He is currently recovering after the surgeries. His mother is a nurse and has dedicated herself to helping him without being able to work. Her colleagues set up a donation account for them to help with the finances during the long recovery.