A mother and two children died, while the children’s father and surviving sister were critically injured in the collision.
APPLE VALLEY, Calif. — A Victorville family is confronting the deaths of a mother and two children while two surviving relatives recover from critical injuries caused by a three-vehicle collision at a major Apple Valley intersection.
Theodora “Tedi” Wilson, 39, and her children, Rose “Rosie” Valenzuela and Felix Valenzuela, were killed in the July 29 crash. Wilson’s husband and the couple’s surviving daughter were critically injured, according to local authorities and court information released as prosecutors filed charges against another driver.
The family was traveling in a 2024 Volkswagen Tiguan shortly before midnight when investigators say a Dodge Caravan entered the intersection of Apple Valley Road and Yucca Loma Road against a red light. The Caravan struck the Volkswagen broadside, pushing it into a Toyota Highlander traveling through the intersection.
The collision occurred at about 11:42 p.m. Wilson and the two children died from injuries suffered in the crash. Her husband, who was driving the Volkswagen, and their other daughter survived and continued receiving care as the legal proceedings began.
Authorities have not released detailed medical information about the survivors or a timetable for their recovery. Officials also have not issued a final investigative report explaining the speed of each vehicle, the full sequence of impacts or whether additional factors contributed to the crash.
Prosecutors charged Hendrix Arcadio Collado, 43, of Hesperia, with three counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence. He also faces two counts of reckless driving causing great bodily injury and a great bodily injury enhancement.
Investigators allege Collado was driving the 2015 Dodge Caravan north on Apple Valley Road when he failed to stop at the red signal. The allegation will be tested through the court process, and the filing of charges does not establish guilt.
Collado was arrested shortly after the crash. Booking records initially cited suspected driving under the influence of drugs causing bodily injury and gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated. Investigators later said drugs or alcohol may have been a factor, but no final toxicology findings have been publicly released.
The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department’s Major Accident Investigation Team continued examining the collision. Such investigations can include vehicle inspections, roadway evidence, witness information, video recordings and other records, though authorities have not specified which evidence has been obtained in this case.
Collado was being held with bail set at $250,000 and was scheduled to appear by video at the Rancho Cucamonga Superior Courthouse on Aug. 5. The criminal case and the investigation into the cause of the collision remained pending.
Author note: Last updated Aug. 5, 2026.