Inset: Demetrius Thomas (Metropolitan Detention Center/Bernalillo County). Background: The Albuquerque, New Mexico, area where Thomas allegedly struck and killed a pedestrian (Google Maps).
A New Mexico man allegedly drove drunk, fatally struck a woman and fled the scene before calling his father for help. Instead of picking him up, the father directed police to his son, reportedly telling officers, “He’s the one who f—ing did it.”
Demetrius Thomas, 34, allegedly hit the woman while driving a gray Ford SUV near Central Avenue NE and Texas Street SE in Albuquerque on Sept. 25, according to a criminal complaint obtained by Law&Crime.
Rather than stop, Thomas allegedly continued roughly six-tenths of a mile to his apartment. The woman was left in the roadway as bystanders attempted CPR, according to the complaint.
After officers reached the crash site, a man waved them down and indicated that a gray SUV was leaving the area. Court documents identify that man as Thomas’ father.
“Come over here because he’s the one who f—ing did it,” the father allegedly told police.
The SUV reportedly had damage across the front passenger-side bumper and hood, and the passenger side of the windshield was caved in. Thomas exited the vehicle and was taken into custody.
Investigators later learned that Thomas had allegedly called his father after the crash and asked him to come get him. According to the complaint, his father responded, “I’m like son, what the f— do you want me to do? Um, you gotta go back over there. You hit somebody. You don’t know if they hurt or not, you gotta go back over there.”
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The father also allegedly asked whether Thomas had been drinking. Thomas reportedly answered, “Yeah,” according to the complaint.
Thomas later gave police a different account, saying he had consumed nothing—including alcohol or drugs—that would have affected his ability to drive.
But as officers placed him inside a patrol vehicle, they questioned him again about alcohol. Thomas then allegedly admitted to drinking “one shot of Admiral Nelson around 9 a.m.”
Thomas allegedly described the collision by saying, “She ran out in front of me and I didn’t want to stop.” He told officers he had been driving home and claimed he was obeying the speed limit because “there’s a camera right there,” according to the complaint.
He also allegedly said, “I stepped on the brake and she hit, she ran into the car and I got scared,” the complaint states.
Thomas reportedly acknowledged that he returned home because he was frightened after the crash. He also told police that his parents urged him to surrender.
Surveillance video from an Albuquerque Transit bus allegedly showed the SUV moving along Central Avenue between the left and center lanes. The woman was crossing southbound when she began running and was struck on the passenger side of the vehicle, according to the complaint. Police said she died “on impact.”
Thomas allegedly failed field sobriety testing, and officers concluded he was impaired while driving. He was charged with homicide by vehicle-DWI and knowingly leaving the scene of a death.
