Inset: Derek Grey. Background: Grey's Ford Mustang split in half while driving 153 mph in Tempe, Ariz. (KSAZ).
A 35-year-old Arizona man will spend nearly two decades behind bars for killing two friends when he lost control of his Ford Mustang at 153 miles per hour and launched the vehicle nine feet into the air before slamming into palm trees.
Derek Grey, also known as Derek Glasscock, was sentenced to 18 years in prison on Friday, according to a sentencing order obtained by Law&Crime.
In August, he pleaded guilty to two counts of manslaughter in the deaths of 32-year-old Jesse Ruiz and 31-year-old Maria Rangel. Prosecutors dropped second-degree murder charges as part of the plea agreement.
The incident occurred around 1:30 a.m. on Nov. 25, 2023, when Grey was racing another car in Tempe.
According to a criminal complaint obtained by local Fox affiliate KSAZ, cops spotted Grey's Mustang going more than 100 mph and tried to pull him over, but Grey kept driving.
"Shortly after the Ford Mustang fled from police, a cloud of smoke was seen rising into the air," the complaint reportedly said.
When cops caught up to the Mustang, it had split in half. Ruiz and Rangel were ejected from the car. Rangel landed 80 feet away. She later died at a hospital. Ruiz died at the scene.
Grey suffered several injuries, including a black eye.
An investigation revealed Grey was driving at 153 mph when he lost control, left the road and went airborne. He crashed into a power pole and two palm trees.
The defendant "repeatedly made spontaneous statements indicating he should not have been driving, and that he had been drinking alcohol," the complaint reportedly said. He told cops he was at a bar with friends before the crash.
Max Aguino, Rangel's brother, told local ABC affiliate KNXV that his sister and Ruiz had been dating for about a year.
"She was happy. She was a beautiful soul, and a beautiful person," Aguino said.
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