SAN ANTONIO – A car barreled into a near West Side home late Tuesday night, narrowly missing a sleeping 11-year-old girl.
The girl's mother credits a redecorating job last weekend for saving her daughter’s life.
“Usually her bed is on this wall,” Crystal Villanueva, who pointed to the area of her home destroyed by the out-of-control car, said. “When she cleaned her room, she moved her bed that way. So I mean, I'm just thankful that she’s fine.”
Villanueva said some of the debris hit her daughter in the head, but she did not require medical attention. Several of Villanueva’s nieces were also sleeping in the room at the time and were not hurt.
Their home, though, was left in serious need of repairs.
San Antonio police said three people were inside the car when it slammed into the home shortly before 11:30 p.m. Tuesday.
"One of them actually started running away, so I had to chase him down,” Ronnie Quinones, Villanueva’s boyfriend, said. “Once my neighbors saw that I was chasing him down, he also started helping me."
Quinones and his neighbors managed to hold onto two teenagers until officers arrived.
A short time later, police found the driver at a gas station along Interstate 35. Officers said a man in his 30s had tried to call them to report his car had been stolen.
Police took the man into custody. They said he was soaking wet when they found him, most likely from crossing a creek during his escape.
Both passengers face a charge of evading arrest. The driver faces multiple charges, including filing a false police report.
Villanueva said he hopes the driver will also pay financially.
“Somebody has to pay for this,” she said. “Somebody has to fix this because I don't have any money.”