McKinley County Sheriff Seeks Public Help in Borrego Pass Teen Homicide

Derrick Toledo, 18, was seen attempting to flag down passing vehicles along County Road 19 near Borrego Pass Community School before his body was recovered there around 10:30 a.m. on April 3. The McKinley County Sheriff's Office has classified his death as a suspected homicide and is asking anyone who drove that rural stretch near the Prewitt exit on Interstate 40 to contact investigators immediately.

Deputies initially received calls about Toledo and responded to the area, locating his body the morning after those initial reports came in. Witnesses told investigators Toledo may have been trying to wave down a ride before he was found, a detail that places him on a road where passing traffic is light and any driver who came through is a potential witness.

County Road 19 runs through one of McKinley County's more isolated corridors, flanking the I-40 Prewitt exit with little commercial activity and sparse population. Borrego Pass Community School is among the few fixed landmarks in the area, giving investigators a geographic anchor for where Toledo was last seen. That remoteness cuts both ways: it limits the pool of potential eyewitnesses, but it also means any person or vehicle that passed through during the relevant window is likely to stand out in the memory of those who were there.

The MCSO Investigations Division is specifically seeking recollections of unfamiliar vehicles near Borrego Pass Community School during the period before the body was found, anyone observed standing along County Road 19 appearing to seek a ride, and dashcam footage recorded along that route between the Prewitt exit and the school. Drivers who captured that stretch on camera should review their recordings before the footage overwrites automatically.

To submit a tip, contact the MCSO Investigations Division directly at (505) 863-1410. Anyone who regularly travels County Road 19 and has not yet heard investigators are actively seeking information should be made aware of that number now.

The sheriff's office is continuing to collect physical evidence and conduct witness interviews. Official updates from MCSO remain the only verified source of information as the investigation unfolds.