Police identify victims,driver in deadly wreck involving pedestrians

Las Cruces Police identified the victims in Sunday’s deadly crash on Valley View Avenue as 29-year-old Denise Chavez and 36-year-old Arturo Cordova.

50-year-old Carlos Garcia, of the 4200 block of Winters Street, was the driver of the GMC Yukon that struck Chavez and Cordova, police said.

Chavez and Cordova were walking along Valley View Avenue during the early-morning hours Sunday, May 7, 2017 when they were struck.

Police said Garcia remains hospitalized in critical but stable condition at University Medical Center in El Paso.

The investigation continues and no charges have been filed against Garcia, police said, adding charges against Garcia are expected.

Sunday police were dispatched to the intersection of Valley View Avenue and Winters Street at about 4 am.

Officers arrived to find Chavez and Cordova unresponsive. Both were pronounced dead on scene, police said.

Traffic investigators said Garcia struck a rock wall at the intersection of Valley View and Winters after running over Chavez and Cordova. The crash critically injured Garcia.

Police said an investigation revealed Garcia had been in an argument with several individuals at a home on Calle Americana prior to the crash.