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UPDATE: Las Cruces Crash Proves Fatal

The 18-year-old woman killed in Thursday afternoon’s two-vehicle crash on University Avenue has been identified as Jo Anna Aurora Rincon of Las Cruces.

Rincon was pronounced dead at the scene. She was a passenger of a white Dodge pickup driven by 18-year-old Benjamin Buntain. Other passengers of the pickup were Ryan Feeback, 23, Alexis Holden, 18, and 20-year-old Nicholas Owings.

Feeback, Buntain, Holden and Owings were all transported to UMC following the crash and remain there Friday morning. Feeback is listed in critical condition at UMC.

The driver and sole occupant of the second pickup involved in the crash, a gray Dodge Ram 1500, was identified as Justin Mauldin. He was not injured and remained on scene to speak with traffic investigators.

At around 2:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 16, police were dispatched to the crash at the intersection of University Avenue and Triviz Drive. Investigators learned that Buntain’s white Dodge pickup was eastbound on University Avenue when it entered the intersection and was struck broadside by Mauldin’s gray Dodge Ram that was headed south on Triviz.

Investigators believe Buntain’s pickup may have entered the intersection on a red light.

Upon impact, Buntain’s pickup rolled at least once and landed on its roof. Feeback and Owings were riding in the bed of the pickup and were thrown from the vehicle. Rincon and Holden were front-seat passengers and partially ejected from the truck. Preliminary information indicates Rincon and Holden may not have been wearing seatbelts.

All six of the young adults involved in the crash are listed as students at New Mexico State University. Citations are pending completion of the investigation.

The crash closed a large portion of University Avenue for more than five hours.

Information from Las Cruces Police