Victim recalls hit-and-run days after suspect's arrest

BAYTOWN — Andres Mireles remembers that day like it was yesterday.

The 44-year-old newlywed called his wife Odelia about 4 p.m. July 28 to let her know he’d be home early from work. Mireles, then a repossession agent, was driving from San Juan to his Baytown home on a motorcycle, a relic from his days as a Harley-Davidson dealer in San Benito.

"I was cruising, taking my time," Mireles said. "Then an SUV came out of nowhere in my peripheral."

Seconds later, Mireles was on the ground, unable to move. He remembers being yanked by the vest by the SUV’s driver, eventually identified as Vallucos gang member Daniel Cuellar.

"He said: ‘Hold me, I’ll get you in the truck,’" Mireles said. "But I told him to call 9-1-1."

Mireles recalls smelling alcohol in Cuellar’s breath as he tried pulling him up. The injured man broke from Cuellar’s grip several times, frustrated with his inability to move his legs.

"I kept thinking: ‘Why can’t I get up?" he said. "That’s when I saw my leg in two different directions."

The man caught a glimpse of Cuellar’s license plate number, muttering it under his breath until it was burned in his memory. When witnesses began to gather at the scene, Mireles yelled out the number, hoping someone would write it down or remember it with him.

"I kept repeating it," Mireles said. "He took off like a bat out of hell."

Mireles said he initially thought Cuellar was trying to help him, perhaps by rushing him to the nearest hospital.

"But now that I know his history, his rap sheet," Mireles said, "I keep thinking he just wanted to dump me somewhere."

Police last week found Cuellar at the Wells Fargo Bank located at the intersection of Trenton and North McColl roads in McAllen, said San Juan Police Chief Juan Gonzalez. Cuellar, who has an extensive arrest history with the San Juan Police Department, was arraigned on charges of resisting arrest and accident involving injury.

Investigators had previously searched for Cuellar at several locations in Alamo, Donna, Harlingen and San Juan. The man reportedly had been hiding in various spots, possibly staying with fellow gang members.

Mireles currently has about 20 percent movement capacity in his left leg, which suffered multiple fractures from the impact. Doctors tell the man he will likely walk within six months to a year — probably with a permanent limp.

The couple said they were thrilled to hear about Cuellar’s arrest, which came shortly after employees at San Benito’s Harley-Davidson dealership began organizing a fundraiser for Mireles. Friends hope to gather funds on Saturday to help the pair pay mounting medical bills, which have already reached $170,000. The couple is also seeking help through the state’s crime victim’s compensation program.

Still bound to a wheelchair, Mireles has received dozens of calls from friends and fellow bikers who plan to attend Saturday’s event. Many have called to share words of encouragement and relate their own stories about similar hit-and-run incidents.

"The community is really coming together," said his wife, Odelia Mireles.

Cuellar’s face was still fresh in Andres Mireles’ mind when the young man’s mug shot was flashed during a local newscast last week.

"As soon as I saw him, I knew it was him," he said. "These things, you remember."