EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) — U.S. Border agents responded to reports of “suspicious activity” near the Mexico-New Mexico border and attempted to stop a car before it sped off and crashed, killing seven people and injuring three.
Agents assigned to the Border Patrol’s El Paso and Santa Teresa stations said they observed a “suspicious vehicle” — a Chevrolet Cruze — in a border area of New Mexico known for human smuggling, according to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection news release.
“This area is known by agents to be used frequently by transnational criminal organizations for human smuggling,” the release said.
Agents said they attempted to pull it over but the driver then allegedly sped off into El Paso, Texas.
El Paso police said after the driver of the Chevrolet Cruze failed to stop, agents discontinued the pursuit.
Border agents later located the vehicle at the intersection of West Paisano Drive and Coldwell Street in Downtown El Paso, where it had collided with a parked semi-trailer.
On Friday, El Paso police released details on the people involved in the crash. Four males and three females died; another three males, ages 16, 18 and 25 were injured, El Paso Police said in a news release.
EPPD only identified two of the survivors by name: Omar Garcia Hernandez, 18 of Juarez, Mexico, and Wilmur Gomez, 25, of Guatemala.
Here is the information on the victims who died. None of their names were released:
- An 18-year-old man from El Paso (driver)
- Mexican national man
- Woman with no other information
- El Paso woman
- El Paso man
- El Paso woman
- Woman with no other information
The three victims who were taken to area hospitals with injures include:
16-year-old boy from Juarez- Omar Garcia Hernandez, 18, from Juarez
Wilmur Gomez, 25, from Guatemala
