PHOENIX — A Valley family is on the verge of homelessness after a car crashed into their home following a shooting.
On Saturday, April 10, a car slammed into the house of single mom to six children, Luzinda Arvizu.
Inside that car, a murder scene. Police say the driver, 37-year-old Carnell Cunningham, shot his girlfriend and passenger Mikayla Ballesteros multiple times before losing control of the car and crashing it into the home.
Ballesteros later died at the hospital, police say.
The home that Cunningham crashed into was totally random. On the other side of the wall, he hit was 9-year-old Rayne, Arvizu's daughter, and Arvizu's boyfriend. Rayna was building a new bed for herself when the car crash through the brick wall. Arvizu's boyfriend moved quickly, throwing Rayna to another nearby bed and out of harm's way.
"I was very scared," said Rayna.
"In the time that the car hit he actually got her and tossed her onto the other bed," said Arvizu. "If he wouldn’t have been here, my daughter would have been gone."
The hole in the wall has been boarded up, and Arvizu's car was damaged and doesn't start. And now due to the crash, Arvizu and her family are being forced to find a new place to live, and soon.
Her lending agency, FirstKey Homes, a home rental company spread across the country, has deemed Arvizu's home "inhabitable" and, according to emails shared with ABC15, is moving quickly to administer a "termination of lease" agreement with Arvizu.
"This is a very difficult situation I have been in. I honestly am not sure how to move forward. I have reached out to others for guidance. Please give me time to figure this out. Thank you," wrote Arvizu to her property manager.
In her response the next day, the property manager said, "Hi Luzinda, We will be moving forward with termination of the lease due to the severity of the damages. A termination agreement will be sent."
According to the agreement, Arvizu will be given her security deposit and two months of rent. Once the agreement has been signed, she only has 72 hours to move herself, and her six children to a new home. Sunday, Arvizu was looking for new homes to rent, not knowing when the lease termination agreement will be signed.
"I’m one of those people who’s determined to take care of my kids. But having to deal with this and what my daughter is dealing with right now, it’s making it hard," said Arvizu.
ABC15 reached out to FirstKey Homes and did not receive any response.
