On November 06, 2018, Gabriel Hilario Reyes was driving on Highway 97 near the TexBest gas station at the intersection of I37 when he crashed his vehicle into the ditch. Across the street, a Miller Lite 18-wheeler was delivering beer to the TexBest. Reyes stole the truck and began to drive through Pleasanton. Police caught up to Reyes and chased the truck for several miles.
During the pursuit, the rear door of the 18-wheeler was open and the Reyes was driving all over the road, sometimes in the oncoming lanes of traffic. Eventually the truck jackknifed, totaling the newly purchased truck. While being apprehended, the defendant assaulted Deputy Kaufman with the Atascosa County Sheriff’s Office and was eventually charged with Evading Arrest in a Vehicle, Theft of Property valued between $30,000-$100,000, and Assault on a Public Servant.
Reyes was high at the time and was apprehended with cocaine across his top lip, forming a “cokestache.” Baggies of cocaine were found in the previously crashed vehicle as well. Reyes had previously been to prison for Enhanced Assault Involving Family Violence, Tampering with Evidence, and Possession a Controlled Substance in a Correctional Facility.
Reyes pleaded guilty to 20 years in TDCJ. Special thanks to the Atascosa County Sheriff’s Office and other involved agencies in quickly apprehending the suspect and preventing a potential tragedy, and my prosecution team, Bradlee Thornton and Chief Investigator Roland Trevino, for ensuring justice was served.
