HOUSTON – A man charged with intoxication manslaughter and intoxication assault following a deadly weekend crash is sending a message of apology to his victims.
According to authorities, Sergio Sanchez Jr. was behind the wheel of a GMC truck when he crashed into the back of a vehicle killing 23-year-old Jacqueline Rocha Sunday morning.
The accident happened in the 1400 block of N. Sam Houston Pkwy. West.
Sanchez made his first appearance in criminal court Monday morning.
As he left, Sanchez told members of the media that he was sorry for his actions.
"I apologize. I take responsibly for my mistake," said Sanchez. "It was a stupid action of mine, but I'm going to try to make this better for myself and hopefully get probation, community service and make this a positive out of a negative."
KPRC Local 2 showed a video of Sanchez' apology to the victim's friends.
"I feel like he's taking it lightly. A person lost their life for this and it's affected a lot of people and my sister was in the hospital," said Rita Reyes. "He almost hit me and the passenger. He could have killed all four of us."
Reyes said she was driving her vehicle when it had mechanical problems. After pulling over, she and the front seat passenger got out of the car to inspect the problem.That's when they noticed Sanchez barreling towards them at a high rate of speed.
Reyes says she and her friend began waving their arms and screaming for Sanchez to stop, but he never slowed down.
Rocha was in the back seat of the disabled Lexus, along with Rita's sister, Soyla, who survived the crash.
Rita Reyes says she believes Sanchez's apology is weak and it can't bring back her friend.
"Jackie was sweet person," said Reyes. "It needs to be known that she was a loving person and a great person."