A road rage fight that started in Juárez escalated in Northeast El Paso, with one person throwing broken asphalt and rocks at a vehicle on U.S. 54 before being fatally struck by another vehicle, court documents state.
George Thomas Halvorsen, 39, is facing one count of collision involving death after he allegedly fatally hit 36-year-old Miguel Eduardo Rodriguez on Dec. 26 on U.S. 54 near Ellerthorpe Avenue.
Rodriguez was allegedly on the side of U.S. 54 throwing pieces of broken asphalt and rocks at another vehicle in a road rage incident when he was struck by Halvorsen, a criminal complaint affidavit states.
Halvorsen was not involved in the road rage incident, but allegedly fled after hitting Rodriguez with his vehicle. Rodriguez was pronounced dead at University Medical Center.
No attorney is listed for Halvorsen in court records.
Road rage incident begins in Juárez
A man only identified as E.V. in court documents told police the night of the fatal hit-and-run crash that he was involved in a road rage incident with Rodriguez that started in Juárez.
As the man crossed into the United States, Rodriguez allegedly began following E.V., the affidavit states. E.V. told police he drove different routes to try to lose Rodriguez, but Rodriguez continued following him.
The incident continued into Northeast El Paso. E.V. was driving northbound on Gateway North Boulevard and decided to jump the dirt median and enter U.S. 54 to try to lose Rodriguez, the affidavit states. Rodriguez’s vehicle was unable to drive over the median and dirt terrain.
Rodriguez got out of his vehicle, ran up U.S. 54 and began to throw pieces of broken asphalt at E.V.’s vehicle, E.V. told police, the affidavit states. Rodriguez allegedly also threw rocks at E.V.’s vehicle.
E.V. told police that he accelerated across all lanes on U.S. 54 from the right shoulder to the left shoulder and fled at a high rate of speed. His truck broke down near Transmountain Road and Gateway North Boulevard. E.V. called emergency services to report the incident.
Police determined in an investigation that E.V.’s vehicle was not the vehicle that hit Rodriguez, the affidavit states.
Crime Stoppers of El Paso tip leads to arrest
Investigators recovered pieces of a broken headlight containing black heavy-duty tape at the crash.
El Paso police called on the public for help in finding the hit-and-run driver. The only information released by the police at the time of the wreck was that the vehicle may have sustained damage to the front-right corner.
Crime Stoppers of El Paso received an anonymous tip on Feb. 23. Court documents do not state what information was provided in the tip. The tip led investigators to believe Halvorsen was involved in the crash, the affidavit states.
Investigators followed up on the tip to a house in the 10000 block of Goliad Drive in Northeast El Paso. Investigators found a white 2008 Chevrolet Silverado parked in the front yard, next to the driveway.
As investigators approached the house, they saw that the truck’s front headlight was missing and there was “damage to the hood of the vehicle that is consistent with striking a pedestrian,” the affidavit states. The truck also allegedly had black pieces of heavy-duty tape matching the same pieces that were found at the crash.
Suspect denies involvement in fatal El Paso crash
Halvorsen exited the house from his garage, spoke with investigators and agreed to give a statement at the El Paso Police Department headquarters.
In his statement, Halvorsen said he was driving the Silverado the night of the crash. He added he was leaving a friend’s apartment near the area of Montana Avenue and Global Reach Drive in East El Paso. He drove on Global Reach towards Spur 601 and eventually merged onto U.S. 54 north.
Halvorsen said that as he merged onto U.S. 54, he saw a vehicle cross all the lanes of traffic and accelerate at a high rate of speed north on the highway. Police identified the car as E.V.’s vehicle in the affidavit. Halvorsen added that he also accelerated with the vehicle.
Investigators told Halvorsen that they found pieces of his headlight at the crash. Halvorsen replied that he had crashed into a pole in a parking lot before the crash, the affidavit states. He added that as he was driving home, he could hear the pieces of his headlight falling off his truck.
When asked about what he did with the headlight, Halvorsen said he removed the headlight and threw it in the trash, the affidavit states.
Investigators asked Halvorsen if he had hit any pedestrians. Halvorsen denied hitting Rodriguez. Police took Halvorsen back to his house after the interview.
Investigation continues into El Paso fatal hit-and-run crash
Investigators used “license plate reader images” of Halvorsen’s vehicle parked at the home on Goliad Drive, the affidavit states.
The photos showed that on Dec. 23 and days prior, the Silverado was seen with the right headlight attached to the vehicle with black heavy-duty tape attached to the light, the affidavit states.
In a Jan. 7 photo taken several days after the collision, the Silverado is missing the right headlight, the affidavit states.
Investigators obtained a warrant from a judge to seize and search the Silverado. The investigators inspected the Silverado on Feb. 27.
They noted that the black heavy-duty tape also had aluminum tape, which matched the pieces that investigators recovered at the crash, the affidavit states.
Investigators also matched up some of the larger pieces of the headlight that they recovered to the leftheadlight that was still attached to the Silverado. They were able to confirm that the pieces recoveredat the crash matched a Silverado’s headlight, the affidavit states.
Police arrested Halvorsen on March 19, in connection with the fatal wreck. He was arrested on one count each of collision involving death and possession of a controlled substance.
An affidavit filed on the possession charge states officers allegedly found Halvorsen had methamphetamine inside a truck during an April 2025 traffic stop.
Halvorsen was booked on March 20 into the El Paso County jail on a bond totaling $105,000. He remains jailed as of Friday, March 27, jail records show.
Aaron Martinez covers the criminal justice system for the El Paso Times. He may be reached at amartinez1@elpasotimes.com.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Man allegedly throwing items in El Paso road rage fight struck by truck
Reporting by Aaron Martinez, El Paso Times / El Paso Times
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