PINAL COUNTY, Ariz. — A driver who allegedly fled the scene of a fatal rollover crash in Pinal County nine months ago has been recently found in Georgia and brought back to Arizona.
Rubelio Cruz de Paz-Lara, 23, was booked into the Pinal County jail this week for a pending charge of manslaughter after he allegedly crashed an SUV that was transporting undocumented migrants.
The Pinal County Sheriff's Office said the SUV moved around a roadblock that had been set up on Nov. 9, 2022 along Park Link Drive.
Deputies located the SUV less than one mile away after it had rolled and multiple passengers were ejected from the car. One of them died and others were severely wounded.
Other subjects ran into the desert and were later caught, but the car's driver could not be located. All the subjects involved are suspected of being involved in human smuggling, PCSO said
After months of investigation, Cruz de Paz-Lara was found to be in custody in Georgia. He's been transported back to Pinal County and is facing several felony charges.
UP TO SPEED
What is the Valley?:
“The Valley” is what locals call the Phoenix Metropolitan Area. It is considered the largest metropolitan area in the Southwest.
The Valley is made up of various major cities other than Phoenix, including:
- Mesa
- Chandler
- Scottsdale
- Tempe
- Glendale
- Surprise
- Peoria
- Gilbert
- El Mirage
- Avondale
- Litchfield Park
- Goodyear
- Buckeye
Whether a city is in the “East Valley” or “West Valley” depends on where it is in relation to Phoenix.
The cities of the Valley have a combined population of 4,845,832 people, according to the 2020 United States Census. This makes it the 11th largest metropolitan area in the country right behind the Boston and Atlanta areas.
How big is Maricopa County?:
Maricopa County is the United States’ 4th largest county in terms of population with 4,485,414 people, according to the 2020 Census.
The county contains around 63% of Arizona’s population and is 9,224 square miles. That makes the county larger than seven U.S. states (Rhode Island, Delaware, Connecticut, Hawaii, New Jersey, Massachusetts and New Hampshire).
One of the largest park systems in the nation is also located in Maricopa County. The county has an estimated 120,000 acres of open space parks that includes hundreds of miles of trails, nature centers and campgrounds.
The county’s seat is located in Phoenix, which is also the state capital and the census-designated 5th most populous city in the United States.
The county was named after the Maricopa, or Piipaash, Native American Tribe.