Former Albuquerque officer indicted on homicide charge in off-duty pedestrian crash

A grand jury indicted a former Albuquerque officer last month in a hit-and-run motorcycle crash that left a man dead earlier this year.

In the July 24 indictment, officer Ezekiel Florez, 29, is charged with homicide by vehicle, knowingly leaving the scene of an accident and tampering with evidence in the May 22 crash that left 37-year-old Daniel Trujillo dead.

Another Albuquerque Police Department officer who was riding on the bike with Florez, Krystal Garcia, was indicted on one count each of knowingly leaving the scene of an accident involving great bodily harm and tampering with evidence.

Florez’s attorney declined to comment, and Garcia’s attorney did not respond to calls for comment.

Both had been officers for just over a year before the incident, according to a statement sent by APD spokesperson Gilbert Gallegos. Both were off-duty at the time of the crash.

Gallegos said the two were placed on administrative leave while APD investigated the incident.

Florez has since resigned from APD and Garcia remains on leave, according to Gallegos.

Florez and Garcia were driving a motorcycle when they reportedly “clipped” a man at “a high rate of speed” while driving on Central and Coors NW shortly before 7 p.m., according to a criminal complaint filed in Metropolitan Court.

The two continued to travel west on Unser and did not stop to check on the man who had been hit.

The man, Trujillo, suffered “extensive trauma to his skull” and had “exposed brain matter,” according to the criminal complaint. Trujillo died on July 4 as a result of his injuries.

Around 8:30 p.m., Garcia had called another officer and told him that she was a passenger on the motorcycle. Garcia believed the two had hit a homeless man who she claimed “ran into the roadway.”

Garcia and Florez returned to the crash scene around 11 p.m., where they were arrested by APD officers.

A trial date has not been set for Garcia or Florez.

Trujillo leaves behind three children and six siblings, according to his obituary. His family said his “infectious smile and vibrant personality could light up any room” and that he was “a gentle soul who had the remarkable ability to uplift those around him.”

“Though he is no longer with us, Daniel’s spirit will endure through the many lives he touched,” Trujillo’s family wrote in his obituary.