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Grandmother of teen killed while riding e-bike speaks
FOX 35’s Stephanie Buffamonte speaks exclusively with the grandmother of 16-year-old Mikhail Cuba, who was killed in a hit-and-run crash in November 2025.
ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. - Back in November 2025, Orange County Deputies initially responded to a call reporting a hit-and-run crash along Wakulla Way. Deputies said they found Mikhail Cuba, 16, in critical condition after being struck by a vehicle. Cuba died from his injuries three days later.
The Florida Highway Patrol first led the investigation, but later transferred the case to the sheriff’s office homicide unit after surveillance footage indicated Cuba was intentionally struck, investigators said.
Detectives obtained a warrant charging Elijah Richard Emmans, 17, with first-degree murder. Emmans was taken into custody Friday afternoon and transported to the Juvenile Assessment Center, the sheriff’s office said.
WHO WAS MIKHAIL CUBA:
FOX 35 News sat down with Mikhail Cuba’s grandmother, Ecstasy Mooty. She says Cuba was riding his e-bike home from a basketball game before Orange County deputies say he was intentionally hit by a car and left for dead. Mooty says the teen accused in his death was part of a group that had bullied him for years.
She says it got so bad — they recently pulled him out of Oakridge High School and started homeschooling him. Now Mooty says she’s focused on justice for her grandson.
"They’re cowards because they did it from behind. He didn’t see them coming," said Mooty. "But they’re going to see me coming. They’re going to see me every day in court, and I hope it haunts them."
THE HEARTBREAK DIDN’T STOP THERE
The heartbreak didn’t stop with Cuba. Just months after the teen’s death, his mother, Ashley, also passed away. Mooty says her daughter fell into a deep depression after losing her son and died from an accidental overdose.
"When you lose the thing that you love the most, it will drive you to even be self-destructive," said Mooty. "Being without your only child. Who is just a child. So much promise. It just broke her heart, and she died in her sleep."