ROSWELL, NM - Police arrested a Roswell man in connection with a pedestrian collision that occurred the night of Dec. 13, the Roswell Daily Record reports.
Investigators said that 35-year-old Gregoria Varella was driving north on Old Dexter Highway shortly before 7 p.m. when he struck a man, who was left lying on the east side of the road. The pedestrian suffered extensive injuries and was taken to an area hospital.
At first Varella told Chaves County Sheriff's Deputies he believed he had hit an animal. But it was later disclosed that he had called a woman and told her he believed he had struck a person, the sheriff's office said, adding that he did not report the accident until 20 minutes later.
Varella was subsequently charged with knowingly leaving the scene of an accident involving great bodily harm or death, and failure to give immediate notice of accidents.
