Fleeing driver plows into Cuba church, dies
The driver of a car that reached speeds up to 130 mph while fleeing from a state trooper early Thursday died after crashing into a church in the village of Cuba, state police say.
Authorities did not identify the driver or the officer, who was “shaken up” but not injured from the incident in Sandoval County, according to New Mexico State Police Lt. Elizabeth Armijo.
The vehicle had a Colorado license plate, she said, and there were no passengers or anyone inside the church.
Armijo said there was no indication the vehicle was stolen, but police found “what appears to be medical marijuana.”
“At this point, it is unknown what the driver’s condition was at the time of the crash,” she said.
Armijo said the officer, who had tried to pull over the driver for speeding, tried to administer lifesaving measures after putting out a fire in the engine compartment of the vehicle, which was lodged inside the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church.
The incident began just north of Cuba when the officer clocked the car traveling up to 90 mph on southbound U.S. 550, Armijo said. When the officer tried to stop the driver, police said, the car sped away.
The state trooper pursued the car for more than a mile but decided to break off the pursuit because of safety concerns as the vehicle approached the village of Cuba, Armijo said.
The officer slowed down and turned off his car’s emergency lights while driving into Cuba, Armijo said, where the officer saw a cloud of dust around the church.
The vehicle apparently had hit a curb before smashing through the front of the church, Armijo said.
Armijo said the outcome “really is unfortunate” and “preventable.”
“The officer was doing what the officer is supposed to do, patrolling, conducting traffic control,” she said. “And the vehicle, unfortunately, for whatever reason, was not traveling safe and then decided to flee from the officer.”