A 59-year-old Delray Beach woman was killed Friday evening and her 28-year-old daughter was injured after Delray Beach police say a man hit them with his van during a dispute.
Witnesses told Delray detectives that the man, Elson Silencieux, 39, of Boynton Beach, hit both women with his Chevy van as he was leaving their house, where he had been doing some work, police spokeswoman Dani Moschella said in an email.
The incident happened just before 6 p.m. at 2488 Angler Drive. It was originally reported to police that shots were fired, but arriving officers found a very different scene.
Delray Beach Fire Rescue took Marie Ambroise and her daughter Nutrishia Pardieu to Delray Medical Center. Ambroise was pronounced dead a short time later. Pardieu was treated and released from the hospital Friday night.
Silencieux fled the scene, but Boynton Beach Police later found the van parked and empty in that city and eventually found Silencieux nearby and detained him.
Marie Ambroise’s sister Lidia Ambroise told CBS-12 that she can’t quite put into words how hard it is to lose her. The family is trying to understand how they will go on without her.
Pardieu is at an uncle’s house, recovering from the physical and emotional pain of seeing her mother’s life taken right in front of her, the station reported.
“She’s gone over nothing!” Ambroise said. The violence happened after a dispute about how much Silencieux should have been paid, according to the television report.
On Saturday afternoon, Silencieux was booked into a Palm Beach County jail. He faces charges of aggravated battery; hit and run, failure to stop at a crash involving death and homicide without premeditation.
Detectives are continuing to investigate Ambroise’s death. Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call detective Casey Kelly at 561-243-7805.
WPEC-Ch.12 contributed to this report. WPEC-Ch.12 is a news partner of the South Florida Sun Sentinel