Distressing photos show what happened after life coach’s spoiled daughter, 19, sped Lexus at 118mph… and cruel twist of fate that saw her hurtle into the path of a lawyer’s minivan

Lorene Seeler Young’s minivan was only in the path of the speeding car that killed her because of a cruel twist of fate.

The grandmother, 65, didn’t get up quite early enough and missed her 4.30am flight out of Fort Lauderdale Airport on May 19, 2024.

Dejected, she secured another flight for later in the day and was being driven home on I-595 by her mother Virginia Baker, 84, in her 2022 Chrysler Pacifica.

Suddenly, the minivan was hit from behind and sent hurtling through four lanes of traffic and crashing into a concrete barrier near Davie, Florida, at 5.43am.

Wannabe model Sofia Todorov, then 19, had smashed into the Pacifica with her mother’s 2024 Lexus IS at 118mph, according to police analysis of the crash.

Young and Baker were thrown forward against the dashboard as their car collided with the barrier at high speed.

The force of the impact spun the minivan around and violently slammed its rear into the barrier a second time before it finally came to rest. 

Young, an accomplished lawyer who ran her own firm, was killed and Baker escaped from the wrecked Pacifica with serious injuries.

‘[Baker] only recalls the sound of a loud impact and then she blacked out,’ Florida Highway Patrol investigators wrote in a report obtained by the Daily Mail.

‘When [she] opened her eyes, she remembered seeing her radio and entire dashboard hanging out, and seeing smoke around her vehicle.

‘[Baker] observed [Young] slumped over the front passenger seat with blood coming out of her mouth and she could hear [Young] making sounds.’

Crash scene photos obtained by the Daily Mail showed the frightening intensity of the collision and the injuries Young and Baker suffered.

The two cars were reduced to crushed and twisted metal and mangled engine parts, with debris strewn across the highway.

Streaks of blood stained the white paint of the roof and door of the Pacifica where Baker clambered out of the wreck to desperately wave for help.

No one driving on the highway that morning stopped.

Inside the minivan, Young’s suitcase, packed for her trip, was flung open and clothes and toiletries strewn across the back seats.

Young’s flip-flops lay on the floor of the passenger seat where they were left when she was pulled from the car with her life slipping away.

Skid marks showed the Pacifica’s path across the highway after it was hit, as Baker desperately tried, and failed, to regain control of the car.

Sofia made no effort to help the family she crashed into, and Baker never saw her before she was rushed to hospital, according to the police report.

The teen’s mother Silvia Todorov lent her the $41,000 luxury car to get home from her shift as a hostess at Sway nightclub in Fort Lauderdale.

Highway Patrol troopers wrote that though Sofia didn’t show signs of impairment at the scene and denied drinking during her shift, but refused to take a blood test. 

Her lawyer refused investigators access to the car’s electronic data recorder and police spent more than a year trying to get Lexus to turn it over, only obtaining the search warrant last July.

Police alleged in their report that the Lexus’ event data recorder ‘black box’ clocked her speed at 130mph just one second before the crash.

She began braking just 1.5 seconds before impact and collided with the Chrysler at 113 to 118mph, hitting it so hard the EDR thought the car rolled.

Sofia, now 21, turned herself in at Broward County Sheriff’s Office in October and was charged with vehicular homicide and reckless driving. She has pleaded not guilty.

Silvia may also face ruin as she is being sued by Baker and Young’s children Chase and Katie in two lawsuits for allowing Sofia to drive the high-powered V8 car.

The civil cases progressed to depositions from involved parties last year, but appear to be on hold since the criminal charges. Sofia and her mother deny liability.

Her daughter’s charges severely tarnished her once-popular Silergy Wellness Center, which offers everything from hypnosis to neuro-linguistic programming.

The 44-year-old bills herself as a ‘holistic life coach’ and ‘corporate mindfulness meditation instructor’, but may need to take her own advice.

‘You can’t put positive thoughts or feelings over bad ones, you need to “clear the mechanism” first. Free your mind of all the negativity and open space for new and positive thoughts,’ her LinkedIn read.

‘At Silergy, we integrate life coaching, mindfulness, meditation, fitness, and wellness retreats to help people overcome challenges such as grief, career transitions, burnout, and anxiety.

‘Our mission is to empower individuals to create lasting rituals that build self-discipline, inner balance, and emotional freedom.’

The business’ website no longer exists and its social media pages have not been updated since Sofia was charged.

Sofia, by contrast, spent much of her time filming TikTok videos and posing for risqué photos – even after allegedly ending a beloved grandmother’s life.

She celebrated her 20th birthday at a glam club in March last year, ‘decided to be a cowgirl for a day’ on a trip to Texas last April and posed on a director’s chair in a barely there bikini in September.

‘Dreamer living for the moments that take your breath away. Sun, sea, and sunset vibes behind the camera, in front of it,’ her since-deleted Patreon opined.

‘I’m a fun, outgoing person with a big personality and a love for adventure. I’m always open to trying new things and stepping out of my comfort zone. 

‘Whether it’s exploring a new place or learning a new skill, I’m all about the experience! I’m kind, hardworking, and genuinely care about the people around me. 

‘I’m currently diving into the world of social media, excited to share my journey and connect with others along the way.’

Sofia also shot dozens of short videos for ‘Sloshed on Broadway’, where she approached inebriated revelers in Nashville to ask them about their sex lives.

The most recent video was posted just four days before her arrest.

Charging documents showed she was living in a residential tower with breathtaking views of Miami Beach where apartments cost more than $4,000 a month to rent. 

Sofia appeared in Broward County was held on a $65,000 bond and ordered to surrender her passport and wear an ankle monitor once she was released on bail.

Her defense lawyer, Jeffrey Grossman, claimed in court at the time that ‘there are no aggravating factors here, it was an accident’ and Baker may have cut her off in traffic.

‘My client indicated to police that the other driver pulled into her lane in front of her,’ he said.

‘Now, I’m not suggesting that my client was driving at a regular speed, but what I am suggesting is that my client did brake as soon as this car pulled in front of her.’

But the police report, relying on data recorded by the car, disagreed.

‘[Baker] was traveling directly ahead of [Sofia]. [Sofia] failed to slow and to keep a safe distance from traffic ahead,’ the report stated.

Sofia told police at the scene that she was going about 90mph, but then in an interview three months later in her lawyer’s office said she didn’t remember.

Neither she nor her attorney consented to police obtaining the EDR and detectives had to get it from the lawyers in the civil suits.

Baker’s lawsuit claimed her injuries from the crash were ‘permanent and continuing in nature’ and would require her to ‘expend great sums for medical, nursing, rehabilitation, and therapeutic and related treatment’.

She told police that she didn’t see another car behind her before being rear-ended.

Young was mourned online by her family and friends, and also by legal clients for whom she won cases.

‘My favorite memories of Lorene are at our grandma Lorene Higgins. Sitting on the back porch eating lunches of cheese, little round lunch meat on crackers,’ her sister Nikki Seeler wrote.

‘Grandma would mix the ketchup and mustard for dipping and we would look out the windows watching squirrels and birds.’

Baker said she knew her daughter was dead as she came to after the crash

‘The insides of my car were dangling. I felt moisture somewhere. The car was smoking,’ she told Local 10 TV.

‘I knew. In the car. And I asked in trauma, when they were working on me. They said, “We’re doing everything we can.” And the next time I asked – God took her.’