Crashed SUV was full of immigrants

TUCSON, Ariz. – Arizona authorities describe a chaotic scene from a weekend crash involving an SUV packed with 20 immigrants from Mexico and Guatemala as it fled the Border Patrol and flipped over, killing five people and injuring 15.

The vehicle was wrecked so badly that authorities had difficulty determining its make and model, and two injured immigrants attempted to flee the scene on foot but were apprehended.

The Chevrolet crashed Saturday night while exiting Interstate 10 about 20 miles east of Tucson, Arizona Department of Public Safety spokesman Bart Graves said Monday.

Border Patrol agents were about a quarter-mile behind it when the crash occurred on the off-ramp to State Route 83, the department said.

Department of Public Safety investigators believed the passengers had entered the U.S. illegally, he said.

Graves said it could be a week or more before investigators formally declare the accident’s cause, but it appeared the driver lost control while driving too fast.