Affidavit provides new details in fatal Queen Isabella Causeway crash; suspect released from jail

SOUTH PADRE ISLAND, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Court documents provided new details in a fatal crash on the Queen Isabella Memorial Causeway that claimed the life of a 20-year-old Valley woman.

Hugo Ernesto Lara, 48, was arrested on a charge of intoxication manslaughter in connection to a crash Sunday that killed Mariah Desiree Enriquez of Edinburg, authorities said. On Tuesday, ValleyCentral learned that Lara had been released from jail.

_{Hugo Ernesto Lara was charged with intoxication manslaughter with a vehicle. (Source: Cameron County Sheriff's Office inmate list)}

A probable cause affidavit stated that at 1:45 a.m. June 2, a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper responded to two-vehicle crash on the causeway. When he arrived, a Port Isabel officer informed him that a vehicle travelling westbound on the eastbound lane was involved in a major head-on collision.

A DPS news release stated a white Ford-150 driven by Lara, collided with a red Kia passenger car, driven by Enriquez. She was found unresponsive and pronounced dead at 2:51 a.m.

The trooper at the scene spoke with Lara, who said he did not know anything and that he was not driving, the affidavit stated. Additionally, Lara said that he went to South Padre Island with friends and was asleep at the time of the crash.

When the trooper asked Lara who his friends were and why they didn't stay at the scene, Lara responded that he did not know their names or why they were gone, the document added.

During the interview, the trooper detected an odor of alcohol coming from Lara. The affidavit shows Lara at first told the trooper he had two to three drinks, but retracted the comment and said he didn't drink anything.

"Mr. Lara kept stating that he was not the driver and that he was in the backseat," the affidavit stated.

During the interview, authorities say they learned from a witness that Lara was the lone driver of the truck. When the trooper notified Lara that they would conduct a field sobriety test, the affidavit says Lara refused and was placed under arrest. It indicates Lara also refused to provide a voluntary sample of his breath or blood.

Lara was arraigned Sunday morning where his bond was set at $350,000.

Officials with the Cameron County Jail told ValleyCentral that Lara has been released from jail on bond.

Records show that conditions of Lara's bond include using an interlock device, which is a breathalyzer that is installed into a vehicle. It requires the driver to submit a breath sample before they can start the vehicle.

A memorial service for Enriquez will be held on Thursday from 5 to 8 p.m. at Memorial Funeral Home in Edinburg. It is located at 208 E. Canton Road.