Karimar Nicole Rios, 18, a Hispanic/Latina woman, was discovered with a gunshot wound inside a crashed vehicle in Orange County, Florida, in the early hours of September 9, 2025. Deputies responded around 2:10 a.m. to reports of a car crash near Sand Lake Road and Lillwill Avenue and found Karimar Nicole Rios gravely injured; she was taken to a hospital, where she died.
The scene bore signs of gunfire tied to the crash.
Neighbors reported being jolted awake by a rapid series of loud bangs, and a witness told reporters the shots appeared to come from another vehicle parked roadside along Sand Lake Road, outside a nearby lounge. The immediate aftermath left the intersection cordoned off as investigators pieced together how a burst of violence on the roadway ended with a young driver mortally wounded inside her car.
As family members prepared services, an online obituary described Karimar Nicole Rios as having “passed away tragically as an innocent bystander” on September 9, 2025, underscoring the randomness of the harm that found her that morning. The notice listed her age as 18 and set her dates of birth and death, offering a stark counterpoint to the sparse early details released by authorities.
Within two weeks, detectives announced arrests. On September 24–25, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office said Jonathan Martinez, 20, and Joshua Benitez Rodriguez, 20, were taken into custody in connection with the killing of Karimar Nicole Rios. Both men were charged with second-degree murder with a firearm and with shooting or throwing a deadly missile into an occupied vehicle. Authorities linked the pair to the gunfire preceding the crash that led to the death of Karimar Nicole Rios; the case proceeded through the county jail system following their arrests.
