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‘It’s like a nightmare that just won’t stop’: El Paso mother says driver left the scene after striking, killing her daughter on New Year’s Day

UPDATE, Jan. 2: EL PASO, Texas– The mother of a 23-year-old woman struck and killed less than two hours into the new year said the driver who struck her daughter left the scene.

“You don’t bury your babies, you bury your parents, you siblings, but not your babies," said Lola Cuellar. "She was only 23 and yes, she was an adult, but she was my baby. She made me a mom."

Cuellar identified the victim as her daughter, 23-year-old Anita Cuellar. 

Police on Sunday announced that the incident is now a criminal investigation. It happened along I-10 east near the Vinton ramp at around 1:30 am on New Year's Day.

ABC-7 sat down with her mother, Lola Cuellar, who last saw her daughter just hours before she was struck. 

Cuellar said that Anita and her boyfriend were headed back to their home in Northeast El Paso, from a New Years celebration with the family. 

It is unclear what caused Anita to get out of her car. 

Cuellar said Anita’s boyfriend was taken to the hospital but staff told her they could not provide more information as to why because she is not considered immediate family.

She said that when she got the call about her daughter, she immediately fell into tears, not knowing yesterday they said their final goodbyes. 

“I went to get one night normal, happy that all my kids were happy, happy for anita, she was getting married she was going to Killeen, she was starting her life and then I wake up and its like a nightmare that just won’t stop,” said Cuellar. 

She said that her daughter was a free spirited person that was very kind and loving. Anita loved to play sports and cheer growing up, she graduated from Canutillo High School and was working towards becoming a nurse. 

She was also planning to get married to her boyfriend and move to Killeen, Texas to start a new life. 

Police have not yet confirmed the incident was a hit-and-run.

ORIGINAL REPORT, Jan. 1: EL PASO, Texas — A pedestrian was struck by a car and killed along Interstate 10 early Saturday morning, becoming El Paso’s first traffic death of the New Year.

Traffic investigators were summoned to the fatality location on I-10 east near the Vinton ramp around 1:30 a.m.

The victim died at the scene, but no further details were immediately available.

Article Topic Follows: Traffic

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