North Hollywood mourns two vendors killed in alleged DUI crash

Flowers, candles and photographs were placed along Lankershim Boulevard in North Hollywood as loved ones mourned Teodora Villalobos and Maria Peck, two street vendors killed in a crash outside the North Hollywood Metro Station on November 10. Police say a driver under the influence hit pedestrians there Tuesday night.

Mourners recalled Villalobos as a hardworking vendor who gave food to people unable to pay. A photograph and flowers were set out at the spot where she had sold food for years. Peck and Villalobos were friends of Sylvia Figueroa, who was also struck and remains in critical condition.

Figueroa’s relatives said she suffered broken ribs, liver bleeding and severe head trauma, and is being helped to breathe with a tube. Her sister-in-law, Eliza Begay, said it was painful to see her in that condition. The family said Figueroa had spent Tuesday evening with the two women before the crash.

Authorities named Ihor Demianenko, 61, as the motorist. A woman living nearby said she had seen him at his house roughly an hour before the crash and that he seemed unsteady, a change from her previous encounters with him.

Figueroa’s family said they are concentrating on supporting her while seeking justice for the women who died. Relatives also described Villalobos as a person who often assisted neighbors by selling food locally.