A 29-year-old woman wanted in connection with a deadly hit-and-run pedestrian crash in El Paso, Texas, was arrested this week after allegedly fleeing to Mexico for more than a year. Melanie Christine Cuellar was taken into custody at U.S. Port of Entry No. 2 in Eagle Pass on Thursday by officers with the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force. Police say Cuellar was wanted in the July 19, 2025 crash in the 6800 block of Alameda Avenue that killed 77-year-old Maria Lopez. Cuellar is charged with collision involving death, a second-degree felony under Texas law, and is being held at the Tom Bowles Detention Center pending extradition.
KFOX reported that Cuellar had been identified by El Paso police as a suspect in the fatal crash and had an active warrant out of El Paso before allegedly crossing into Mexico. KSAT reported that Eagle Pass police said Cuellar fled to Mexico after the reported crash and that she was taken into custody without incident at the border crossing. Investigators say Lopez, 77, was struck and killed while she was reportedly on her way to Juarez. The case remains under investigation as extradition proceedings continue.
