Cyclist started fire to summon help after allegedly being struck by a drunken driver near Santa Fe

An injured bicyclist lit a fire along Interstate 25 early Saturday in an attempt to draw the attention of authorities — this after he was allegedly hit by a drunken driver who was fleeing Santa Fe police.

Jorge Suarez Huerta, 24, is charged with aggravated DWI, aggravated fleeing, reckless driving, great bodily harm by vehicle and leaving the scene of a crash. He has been booked into the Santa Fe County Detention Center. It is unclear if Suarez Huerta has an attorney.

The incident marks the fourth time Suarez Huerta has been charged with DWI since 2020, the other three cases ending in a conviction, according to court records.

The cyclist who was reportedly struck by Suarez Huerta “suffered a broken leg and possibly a broken hip.” The man didn’t have a cellphone and told police he sparked the fire “to summon assistance for his injuries.”

Deputy Chief Ben Valdez, a Santa Fe police spokesperson, said around midnight Friday an officer pulled over the driver of a Chrysler 300 who was speeding on St. Francis Drive. He said the driver — identified as Suarez Huerta — had scratches and dry blood on his face and arms.

Valdez said Suarez Huerta fled from the traffic stop onto I-25 and Santa Fe police learned he had been in a domestic violence incident just before being pulled over. He said, “a short time later,” officers found Suarez Huerta at the Cochiti exit changing a flat tire and arrested him.

Valdez said at 1:45 a.m. another officer responded to a fire alongside I-25 near the St. Francis Drive exit. He said the man who started the fire told police “he had been struck by a car as he rode his bike on the shoulder of the road.”

Valdez said officers found vehicle parts at the scene of the crash, including a side mirror from a Chrysler 300 and discovered Suarez Huerta’s vehicle was missing a mirror. He said Rio Arriba County deputies would also be charging Suarez Huerta with choking a household member and false imprisonment from the alleged domestic dispute.

“All arrested persons are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law,” Valdez said.