LAS CRUCES, N.M. (KFOX14/CBS4) — A suspected drunk driver’s report of a sexual assault led New Mexico State Police to arrest a fugitive with nationwide warrants during a tactical operation in Las Cruces Friday.
The incident began Thursday when a State Police officer arrested a 43-year-old woman for aggravated DWI and fleeing the scene of a crash on I-25 near Socorro.
At the hospital for a blood draw, the woman told police she had been sexually assaulted earlier that day by her ex-boyfriend, Brian Smolak, 43.
Investigators determined the alleged assault occurred in Las Cruces and learned Smolak was a fugitive with two nationwide extraditable warrants from Arizona, including one for aggravated assault on a peace officer.
After locating Smolak at a Las Cruces motel, the NMSP Fugitive Apprehension Unit and Tactical Team executed a search warrant and took him into custody.
Smolak remains held on his active warrants and may face additional charges. NMSP says the investigation continues.