4 killed, 1 injured in Polk

HAINES CITY -- A young married couple, their baby and a relative died Monday when the driver of the car they were riding in apparently drove through a stop sign and crashed into an oncoming vehicle, police said.

Hector Jaimes, 17; his wife, Zenaida Mosqueda, 18; and their baby, Jasmine Jaimes, died at the scene of the crash in east Haines City, police said. Hector Jaimes' sister, Jessinia Jaimes, 20, also died in the crash.

The four were riding in a 1994 Dodge Spirit driven by Luis A. Espinoza, 19, of Tampa, a Haines City police report said. Espinoza was critically injured in the crash.

Police reports say he was driving north on Powerline Road about 10:40 a.m. when he drove through the stop sign at County Road 580.

His vehicle struck a westbound Dodge Durango driven by Dielita C. Bakken, 56, of Kissimmee, police said. Bakken was not seriously injured.

Hector was thrown from the car as the vehicles collided.

It has been a deadly new year for Central Florida motorists. Last month 63 people died, a 57.5 percent increase from the previous year, according to the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.

Polk County has had a particularly bloody month.

Haines City police Chief Morris West said he doesn't know what is causing the increase.

"This is the most traffic fatalities I've seen in the 20 years I've been here," he said.

By Amy L. Edwards Orlando Sentinel Staff Writer

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