Albuquerque man jailed after fatal crash that killed bicyclist

A bicyclist died after a pre-dawn crash at Central Avenue and Maple Street in southeast Albuquerque sent one rider to the hospital and left the city investigating another deadly collision on a major corridor. An Albuquerque man identified in local reports as Brent Curley was jailed after the crash, which authorities say happened around 6:15 a.m. Saturday.

A criminal complaint says Curley’s vehicle entered the ART bus lane, cut between two bicyclists and struck one of them. Police said the vehicle accelerated just before the crash. The victim was taken to the hospital but died of injuries, turning the case into a fatal bicycle collision investigation in Bernalillo County.

Local television reports said Curley was charged with vehicular homicide, along with aggravated driving while under the influence and leaving the scene of an accident. Albuquerque police have not released additional details about the case.

The crash added to a string of deadly bicycle incidents on Albuquerque streets. On May 11, police said an adult male bicyclist died after a hit-and-run at Carlisle Boulevard and Claremont Avenue NE. In that case, 26-year-old Gilbert Nunez-Guzman was charged with leaving the scene of an accident and tampering with evidence. Less than a year earlier, a July 22, 2025 crash at Carlisle and Delamar NE killed a 19-year-old bicyclist.

Those deaths have kept attention on how Albuquerque’s road design and enforcement decisions affect people on bikes and on foot. Recent reporting showed the city’s pedestrian death toll fell last year, ending New Mexico’s eight-year streak as the state with the nation’s worst pedestrian death rate, but the repeated bicycle fatalities show how much danger still remains on streets where cars, buses and cyclists are forced to share space. Central Avenue, one of the city’s busiest corridors, has again become a reminder that one reckless move can turn a morning commute into a fatal crash.