Arrest made in Tuesday’s fatal crash
Woman charged with running red light in stolen truck
Police arrested a woman who they say ran a red light in a stolen truck and crashed into another car — killing the driver and injuring his two children — before fleeing on foot.
Vanessa Moya, 29, is charged with vehicular homicide, leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death and receiving or transferring stolen motor vehicles.
The crash occurred Tuesday night at a busy Albuquerque intersection and left the other driver, 39-year-old Lawrence Bennett, dead and injured his 10-year-old daughter and 12-year-old son.
Police spokesman Simon Drobik said both children were in stable condition Wednesday but did not elaborate on their injuries.
He said police believe Moya was under the influence of a narcotic and are going to draw her blood for a drug test.
According to a criminal complaint filed in Metropolitan Court, officers responded to the crash at Central and Eubank around 9 p.m.
A witness told police Moya ran a red light before the crash and left the area on foot.
Police say Bennett was pronounced dead at the scene, his children were taken to the hospital and officers arrested Moya a couple of blocks away.
“(Moya) was displaying pinpoint pupils and was asleep in the back of a patrol unit,” a detective wrote in the report. “I could immediately smell a rancid odor on her person, which is consistent with someone under the influence of a (opioid).”
According to the complaint, Moya refused to talk to police or take a sobriety test but she did take — and pass — an alcohol breath test at the substation.
“(Moya) showed signs of impairment due to a drug and refused a drug recognition evaluation,” a detective wrote. “The testing of the defendant’s blood is necessary for the investigation.”
Bennett’s younger brother, Steven Bennett, said his brother was driving home from an event with his two children when Moya crashed into him.
“Apparently she hit my brother’s car at such a rate of speed ... He more than likely did not see it coming,” he said. “It’s unfortunate that it came down to somebody ... being reckless while driving.”
Bennett, who lives in Omaha, Neb., said he hasn’t slept since his parents called Tuesday night and was on a plane to Albuquerque by morning.
Bennett said his brother — a father of four — enjoyed adventuring in the New Mexico wilderness with his children, often could be found building things around the house and was referred to as “Moe” by those who knew him best.
“I think it had something to do with the Three Stooges,” he said affectionately. “Everybody loved him — random strangers, he could brighten their day just by talking to them.”
Bennett said his brother was raised in New Mexico and had worked for the U.S. Postal Service the past decade, becoming a “very charismatic” fixture for those on his mail route.
Of all the things, he said he will miss the quiet moments and conversations they shared.
“He was my brother ... that’s what I’m going to miss most about him,” Bennett said. “We’ll pick up the pieces and we move on. That’s really all we can do.”