(Courtesy photo/SBPD)
A San Benito Police Officer is lucky to have evaded more severe injuries after her patrol unit was involved in a collision on New Year’s Eve.
According to a statement issued by the City of San Benito, during the late evening hours on Sunday,
December 31, 2023, officers with the San Benito Police Department (SBPD) were investigating an auto collision on S. Expressway 83 near the Oscar Williams Road overpass. While officers were on scene, they were informed by a passing motorist that an officer conducting traffic control further down on the expressway had been struck by a vehicle. Officers immediately responded to the area and located a San Benito Police Officer lying on the roadway.
The officers and other emergency personnel provided medical attention at the scene before the injured officer was transported to Valley Baptist Medical Center (VBMC) in Harlingen. The officer was listed in stable condition, suffering several fractures and other injuries.
The officer’s identity was initially withheld at this time of the incident, but on Wednesday morning, she was officially identified by the SBPD as Yesenia Ruiz and was released from the hospital that morning. According to SBPD records, she started with the department in May of 2023.
The driver who allegedly struck the officer remained on scene and was taken into custody. He was identified as Yasser Ismail Abu Awwad Martinez, a 21-year-old Brownsville resident. He was charged with Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon.
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2024-01-05 07:23:44 , San Benito News
