NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A man has been arrested in connection with a fatal hit-and-run crash in Madison from 2023, after DNA testing revealed a link to the case.
Kimberly Benezue, a 26-year-old mother from Clarksville, was killed when a stolen Dodge Charger collided with her Mazda 3 near Dickerson Pike and Old Hickory Boulevard on February 4, 2023.
According to the Metro Nashville Police Department, the Charger was stolen less than three hours before the crash and was traveling at 69 mph in a 35 mph zone seconds before colliding with the Mazda.
According to court documents, a nearby officer attempted to stop the Charger after it was seen “doing donuts in the roadway” prior to the crash, but the stolen car fled the traffic stop with other vehicles engaged in “street racing” activity.
“The last words were, ‘I love you Mom,’ and we got the last hug,” Benezue’s mother, Angela Hudson, stated in February.
Hudson has been interviewed by News 2 several times in recent years, including on the two-year anniversary of her daughter’s death for our Nashville Unsolved series.
Benezue was driving home with a friend after a night out when the accident happened, killing her and sending her friend to the hospital. According to court documents, one Charger passenger entered a waiting white sports car without first checking on the Mazda’s occupants.
“The first question that comes out of my mouth is, I’m like, ‘Where’s Kim?'” Kiya Garmon, Benezue’s friend, explained.
Garmon and Benezue were in the car together that night. She is still healing from her numerous injuries.
“I deal with survivor’s guilt a lot,” Garmon explained.
However, she stated that there is now a glimmer of hope in the case.
“My knees struck the ground. “All I could say was ‘Thank you, Jesus!'”Hudson spoke.
According to Hudson, that was her reaction when she received a call from an MNPD detective informing her that someone had been charged in the case after DNA evidence found on a water bottle inside the car helped identify the suspect.
“I vowed not to let this case go cold. Hudson stated, “You just get to the point where you have nothing else to do and turn it all over to God, and when I did that, here we are.”
Hudson has been fighting for her daughter for two years, and she now hopes that the justice system will help her finish the fight.
“I believe this will be the final chapter. Now, more than anything else, I rely on the justice system to do the right thing,” Hudson said.
Torion Bean Jr., 25, faces charges of criminal homicide, reckless aggravated assault, vehicle theft, evading arrest, leaving the scene of a fatal accident, and drag racing with serious bodily injury.
According to authorities, Bean, who was convicted of vehicle theft and multiple counts of robbery in 2019, was on probation when he was arrested in Marshall County this week. He’s being held on a $150,000 bond, but Hudson expressed disappointment that he has one at all.
