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Matthew Mummaw, age 34, of Jacksonville, Florida, was sentenced on Friday, Dec. 17, after pleading guilty to manslaughter in October for the death of 38-year-old Erik Canales in Uniondale, said Acting Nassau County District Attorney Joyce A. Smith.
In August 2020, Mummaw was in Nassau County as an employee of Heart Utilities of Jacksonville. He was being paid to repair power lines that were impacted by Hurricane Isaias, according to court documents.
On August 14, 2020, Mummaw met other members of his utility crew at the Dave and Buster’s parking lot in Westbury, waiting to see if they had any work for the day.
High on a combination of drugs, Mummaw drove his utility truck out of the parking lot and onto Merchant’s Concourse. As he approached the intersection of Merchant’s Concourse and Corporate Drive, the light at the intersection was red, court documents show.
Mummaw then drove through multiple vehicles stopped at the light, between lanes of travel, and through the intersection, while the light was still red, striking five separate vehicles and causing property damage, court records said
He left the scene of those collisions and continued to drive on Merchant’s Concourse where he veered out of his lane and mounted the sidewalk near the overpass for the Meadowbrook State Parkway, striking Canales who was riding his bicycle home from work. Canales was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.
After striking Canales, he again left the scene and continued driving erratically, crashing head-on into a delivery truck and pickup truck on Stewart Avenue, court records show.
Mummaw then exited his vehicle and began physically assaulting the driver of the delivery truck, punching him in the head and body until the defendant was removed by police and civilians, the DA's Office said.
The investigation found Mummaw was high on drugs including meth, amphetamines, and fentanyl at the time of the crash, court records show.
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