SENTENCED: Alyssa Veronica Garcia Gets 2 Years for Failure to Stop and Render Aid — May Be Out Sooner
This morning, Alyssa Veronica Garcia was sentenced to 2 years in state jail for the felony offense of Failure to Stop and Render Aid – Serious Bodily Injury after hitting a pedestrian in Houston and leaving the scene. Despite the seriousness of the incident, she may be released early.
On April 23, 2024, around 11:40 PM, Hood News Peep Jose-Sai Berrios was walking along the feeder road of the Eastex Freeway in northeast Houston when he was struck by a black SUV. The driver didn’t stop, didn’t check on him, and didn’t call for help.
Deputies arrived to find Berrios unconscious and critically injured. He was rushed to Memorial Hermann Hospital where he’s remained for a long time, suffering from a shattered pelvis, a traumatic brain injury, and loss of physical function. It’s been a whole year and some months later and he has a lot of difficulties in his life. He will never be the same. He doesn’t function in the same capacity as he did prior to the accident.
Investigators collected broken pieces from the vehicle at the scene, including a “Cypress” license plate frame and part numbers linked to a Volkswagen Atlas SUV.
Over the next few days, detectives pulled surveillance footage from several businesses nearby. The video showed a black SUV hitting the victim and then fleeing west onto Hopper Road. More videos captured the SUV traveling through multiple intersections before it disappeared into a neighborhood.
The trail led investigators to a wrecked black Volkswagen Atlas abandoned about 3 miles away, crashed into a telephone pole. The damage perfectly matched the debris found at the crash scene. The SUV was registered to Alyssa Veronica Garcia.
Investigators then reviewed more footage from earlier that night. At 7:59 PM, Alyssa was seen arriving alone in the same SUV at a restaurant on N Sam Houston Parkway. She ate and drank with a man until 10:11 PM, then left briefly in his vehicle, before getting back into her own SUV alone at 11:25 PM and driving away—just minutes before the crash occurred nearby.
Despite the mounting evidence, Alyssa reported her vehicle stolen the next morning, claiming she hadn’t left her home the entire night. She repeated that same false story during a follow-up interview weeks later, even though detectives had surveillance video and license plate tracking data proving otherwise. She was charged and arrested. In addition to the hit-and-run charge, she was also accused of knowingly making a false report to a peace officer. Today in court, Jose sister gave a victim impact statement, and according to her, Alyssa had a smirk on her face.
