Third juvenile arrested in fatal hitandrun crash that killed bicyclist in New Mexico
Mar 20, 2025
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – Police say they have arrested the third and final juvenile suspect connected to the deadly hit-and-run crash of a bicyclist in Albuquerque last year.
The three suspects, who were 15, 12 and 11 at the time of the crash, are now in custody.
The cyclist, 63-year-old
Scott Habermehl, was riding to work at Sandia National Laboratories in May 2024 when the teens hit him with a stolen car. The kids had been recording the crash, during which the driver swerved into a dedicated bike lane, the Albuquerque Police Department said.
That video footage also included audio that indicated the boys had intentionally hit the cyclist, according to the APD.
"Just bump him, brah," the 15-year-old suspect said from the back seat of the car.
The driver, believed to be the 12-year-old, responded. “Like bump him?”
“Yeah, just bump him. Go like,15, 20 [mph],” the back passenger says.
The driver soon struck Habermehl with the front passenger side of the vehicle, while the front passenger — believed to be the 11-year-old suspect — was waving a handgun and laughing.
"There were loud sounds, including metal flexing, as the momentum of the crash carried Habermehl and his bicycle on top and off the passenger side of the vehicle," police said.
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Deputy District Attorney Bridget McKenney played the video Wednesday at a children's court hearing for the 13-year-old. She also shared photos of the vehicle, the right side of its windshield shattered, its hood dented and the bumper damaged.
McKenney told the court that she couldn't think of a "better word than callous" for the behavior seen in the video.
“You can hear the impact of the victim slamming into the windshield. You can see them turn the camera as they speed off watching the victim hit the ground," she said.
The Albuquerque Police Department headquarters is seen in February 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan, File)
Police said they arrested the oldest suspect, now 16, on Wednesday after the other two were taken into custody earlier this week. The 16-year-old is facing an open count of murder, conspiracy to commit murder, leaving the scene of an accident, and unlawful possession of a handgun.
The 11-year-old was taken into custody on Tuesday and is in the custody of New Mexico's Children, Youth & Families Department. Detectives are working with prosecutors and state social workers to determine what charges can be brought against an 11-year-old and whether he might be detained. (The Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office said he will face murder charges in the case. However, state law prevents a child younger than 12 years old from being detained in a juvenile facility.)
The 13-year-old suspect was taken into custody on Monday. He is facing charges of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, knowingly leaving the scene of an accident, and unlawful carrying of a handgun. On Wednesday, Judge Catherine Begaye opted to keep him in custody.
The Associated Press contributed to this report. ...read more read less