MIDLAND, TX (KWES) - The suspect in the hit-and-run crash that occurred Tuesday has been caught and is being extradited back to Midland.
Jose Gilvane Oliveira Baldassari, 48, was driving an 18-wheeler involved in the crash on I-20 and fled the scene.
According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, Baldassari was traveling east on Interstate 20.
Ricardo Silva-Martinez was stopped in traffic on I-20 due to a rollover that had occurred earlier, with Roberto Escobar, 49, directly in front of his vehicle. Emma Bejarano, 44, was in front of Escobar, and Robby Blair, 42, was in front of Bejarano with Baldassari approaching from the rear.
Baldassari failed to control his speed striking Martinez in the rear creating a chain reaction of collisions.
As a result of the crash, Silva-Martinez and her passenger Bladimir Rodriguez, 43, died, and Bejarano was transported to Midland Memorial Hospital with non-capacitating injuries.
Baldassari was caught by Border Patrol while walking east on Texas 20 near Silverman road, six miles east of the Marcelino Serna Port of Entry in El Paso County.
Border Patrol Agents identified Baldassari and took him into custody for immigration violations.
At the Clint, Texas Border Patrol Station, Baldassari's biometric information was entered into the national databases by BP Agents and came back with an alert/warrants for manslaughter.
He will be transferred to Midland County at a later date.
DPS was able to identify the driver because they found his wallet at the scene, which was officially classified as a crime scene after the man fled.
The crash on eastbound I-20 near 1788 left two people dead.
