Police make arrest following deadly head-on crash in El Mirage

The mug shot for 28-year-old Adrian Ballesteros.
The mug shot for 28-year-old Adrian Ballesteros.(Source: Maricopa County Sheriff's Office)
Published: Jul. 7, 2022 at 11:46 AM MST
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EL MIRAGE, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) - An arrest has been made following a head-on crash in El Mirage Wednesday evening that left an 11-year-old girl dead and three others hurt. It happened just after 6:30 p.m. on El Mirage Road, just north of Olive Avenue.

El Mirage police arrested 28-year-old Adrian Ballesteros in connection to the crash. Police say detectives determined Ballesteros, who was a passenger in a pickup truck heading south on El Mirage Road, was having an argument with his girlfriend while she was driving and pulled on the steering wheel. Police say this caused Ballesteros’s girlfriend to lose control of the truck and cross over the median into oncoming traffic. According to police, the truck hit a car heading north on El Mirage Road and then rolled over.

An 11-year-old girl in the car was thrown from the vehicle and later died at a hospital. A 14-year-old girl and a 16-year-old girl in the car were also hurt and taken to the hospital in stable condition. The 53-year-old woman driving the car was also taken to a local hospital for minor injuries. Police say Ballesteros and his girlfriend had minor injuries from the crash.

Ballesteros has been booked into jail on one count of manslaughter and five counts of endangerment.

Police said the pickup truck driver went across a raised median and slammed into the car.
Police said the pickup truck driver went across a raised median and slammed into the car.(Arizona's Family)