A New Mexico man was arrested on an intoxicated manslaughter charge in connection with a fatal wreck that killed an 18-year-old El Paso girl, authorities said.
Abel Garcia, 48, of Chaparral, New Mexico, turned himself into El Paso Police Department officers on Wednesday, Jan. 21, in connection with a fatal crash that killed Angelique Diaz De Leon on Jan. 1, El Paso Police Department spokesman Officer Adrian Cisneros said in a news release.
The fatal crash occurred on Gateway North Boulevard and Sean Haggerty Drive in the Northeast El Paso.
Abel Garcia
Garcia is facing one count of intoxicated manslaughter. He was also arrested in connection with an outstanding warrant on a family violence charge.
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He was booked into the El Paso County Jail on Friday, Jan. 23, on a bond totaling $151,500, jail records show. He was released the same day after posting bail. No attorney is listed in court records for Garcia.
Garcia allegedly drove drunk, passed red light
Diaz De Leon, 18, was a passenger in a 2013 Chevrolet Camaro driven by Nicholas Jasay Ramirez, 19, of Chaparral, about 2 a.m. on Jan.1 on Gateway North Boulevard and Sean Haggerty Drive in the Northeast El Paso.
The Camaro was hit by a Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck allegedly driven by Garcia. Diaz De Leon dead at the scene. Ramirez suffered minor injuries. He was taken to a hospital for treatment.
Angelique Diaz De Leon, 18, died after a vehicle she was riding in was struck by another vehicle about 2 a.m. on Thursday, Jan.1, on Gateway North and Sean Haggerty Drive in the Northeast El Paso.
El Paso police officers determined in an investigation that Garcia was driving drunk and failed to stop at the red light, causing him to t-bone the Camaro, the news release states.
Angelique Diaz De Leon: ‘Dependable, kind’
Diaz De Leon was a recent graduate of El Paso Independent School District’s Transmountain Early College High School.
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School officials remembered Diaz De Leon as a “dependable, kind, and uplifting. She brought light to our campus.“
Diaz De Leon was the first fatal traffic-related death of 2026.
Aaron Martinez covers the criminal justice system for the El Paso Times. He may be reached at amartinez1@elpasotimes.com.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: New Mexico man arrested for intoxicated manslaughter in teen’s death