09-07-2025
Driver accused in fatal wreck said he didn't stop because he was tired, NM cops say
A 61-year-old man accused in a fatal hit-and-run wreck told authorities he thought he struck a dog and didn't 'stop after the impact because he was tired,' New Mexico police said.
The man was arrested on suspicion of homicide by vehicle, knowingly leaving the scene of an accident with great bodily harm or death and other charges, the New Mexico State Police said in a July 7 post on Facebook.
McClatchy News reached out to prosecutors July 9 about whether formal charges have been filed in the case and was awaiting a response.
The wreck happened the evening of July 3 in Sunland Park, police said.
Two people were crossing the street on foot when 'a maroon Ford Ranger traveling at a high rate of speed' hit them, according to police.
One of the pedestrians, Graciela Sahs, died at the scene, and the other was taken to the hospital with critical injuries, police said.
A truck matching the description of the one in the wreck was later found under a tarp at a Sunland Park home, and 'the evidence and damage observed on the vehicle were consistent with the findings at the crash scene,' police said.
The 61-year-old man told authorities he was involved in the wreck and said he tried to hide the damage by covering the truck, according to police. Investigators also 'learned that (he) had told family members he had 'killed' someone near the casino,' police said.
In an interview with KTSM, Sahs' parents said their 26-year-old daughter was planning to be a veterinary technician.
'It's just so heartbreaking and just knowing how it happened. She deserves to be here with us,' her father, Nikolas Nava, told the outlet.
Sunland Park is about a 10-mile drive northwest from El Paso, Texas.
