Insurance firm sues Art Man garbage truck driver, others

The Art Man garbage truck driver who was previously acquitted of homicide charges for a fatal car accident in February 2021 is set to appear in Superior Court again, this time in response to a civil lawsuit filed by Calvo’s Select Care Insurance Inc., which shelled out over $57,000 following the fatal incident.

Calvo’s Insurance, through attorney David Banes, has filed a civil lawsuit against Art Man garbage truck driver Eduardo Fabia, Art Man Corp., and Art Man’s insurance carrier, DB Insurance Co. Ltd., alleging equitable indemnification and unjust enrichment.

Calvo’s Insurance is asking for an undetermined amount of money judgment to be proven at trial.

In its complaint, Art Man brought up the Feb. 1, 2021, incident where Art Man’s garbage truck that Fabia was driving, collided with a pickup truck belonging to Quin Manglona across the Marina Heights Business building intersection in Puerto Rico.

Aside from Manglona, the pickup truck also had two passengers on its bed, Rommel Irang and Miah Raju, who were employees of Manglona.

At the time of the incident, Calvo said the pickup truck was making a left turn to go to the Smiling Cove Marina while Fabia was traveling southbound. The complaint alleges that the traffic light for southbound traffic was red while the traffic light for making a left turn was green.

“The garbage truck was supposed to stop at the intersection; however, instead of stopping, Fabia ran the red light…,” the complaint said.

As a result, the garbage truck collided with the pickup, severely damaging the pickup and the truck was deemed a total loss.

In addition, because of the collision, Irang and Raju were thrown off the pickup truck, with Irang leaving the scene injured but alive, while Raju sustained injuries that eventually resulted in his death.

“The pickup truck was insured by Calvo’s pursuant to an automobile insurance policy issued to Manglona. Irang and Raju were covered under a workers’ compensation insurance policy provided by Calvo’s to Manglona. Upon information and belief, the garbage truck was insured by DB Insurance pursuant to an automobile insurance policy provided by DB through Moylan Insurance Underwriters Inc. Claims for property damage to the pickup truck and for workers’ compensation for Irang and Raju were made to Calvo’s. Calvo’s paid those claims under the respective insurance policies, including $23,400 for the property damage to the pickup truck, $6,540 as workers’ compensation for Irang, and $27,219.64 as workers’ compensation for Raju, for a total of $57,159.64,” the lawsuit states.

Calvo argues that Fabia was at fault during the accident so is liable for the damage to the pickup truck and for the injuries Irang and Raju sustained.

Calvo adds that, as Fabia’s employer, Art Man was vicariously liable and since the garbage truck was insured by DB, DB was liable to pay Fabia’s liabilities for the damage to the pickup truck and for the bodily injuries to Irang and Raju.

“Neither Calvo’s nor any of its insured were at fault for the accident. It is inequitable for them to shoulder the loss caused by Fabia acting within the scope of his employment with Art Man and covered by DB. Calvo’s is entitled to equitable indemnification from DB, Fabia, and Art Man. It is unequitable and unjust to allow Fabia, Art Man, and DB to retain the benefits conferred by Calvo’s without compensating Calvo’s,” the lawsuit said.

Back in May 2022, a jury acquitted Fabia of the charges filed against him that included homicide by vehicle and failure to obey a traffic signal.

During his trial, although photos taken following the crash showed the southbound traffic light was red, the prosecution could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the light was red when Fabia ran through it.

In addition, although there was surveillance footage acquired from the nearby MHI and MHII buildings, the defense argued during the trial that there were objects obstructing the view of the traffic lights, so it was unclear whether Fabia ran a red light.

Also, some inconsistencies brought to light during trial in the testimonies given by witnesses ultimately stirred reasonable doubt for the jurors.