Sahuarita High student, 16, dies in accident

A Sahuarita High School student was killed Friday night in a two-car accident on Duval Mine Road near the Interstate 19 north onramp.

Daniel Figueroa, 16, was a junior and a member of the Sahuarita High School basketball team.

At approximately 11 p.m., Figueroa was the passenger in a Mitsubishi Eclipse when it and a Ford pickup collided east of the traffic light. The pickup was travelling west on Duval Mine Road.

Sahuarita Police Sgt. Matt Malone said the driver, a Sahuarita High junior, and the two people in the pickup, also Sahuarita High students, were minors.

Green Valley Fire District Capt. Melissa Smith said it was unknown whether Figueroa and the driver of the Mitsubishi were wearing seat belts, but the three people in the pickup were not wearing seat belts.

The Mitsubishi driver and the pickup’s front-seat passenger were taken to University Medical Center in Tucson and are being treated for serious injuries. The driver and other passenger in the pickup refused medical care and were released into their parents’ custody.

“Daniel was a great kid and one of the most beloved members of our team,” Sahuarita varsity basketball coach Scott Boyter said.

“This is brutal. The team is struggling right now, but we’re going to get through this together.”

Memorial services for Figueroa, a Sahuarita native, were incomplete Saturday.

The wreck was the second fatal accident involving a SHS student this school year. On Sept. 25, Beth Brakke died in a one-car crash at I-19 and Sahuarita Road.

The school plans to set up a crisis response team to help support the students and faculty when school resumes Tuesday. Monday is a school holiday in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

nprevenas@gvnews.com | 547-9747

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