A Farmington man faces one felony and three misdemeanor charges after reportedly striking a woman and her dog with his vehicle in Kirtland early Sunday morning.
Kolton Begay, 18, reportedly partied the night before at Wowie’s, an event center in Gallup that hosted a country dance over the weekend. Begay claimed he, had “two shooters of Yukon Jack” there, according to a statement of probable cause.
Begay reportedly told investigators that there was drinking at Wowie’s and “he didn’t have to buy it, “it was just given to him,” and it was “common for people under 21 to be given alcohol and drink while there,” the report said.
However, Wowie’s is a family event center and alcohol is not served, said Dennis Rosales, owner.
“He probably got it somewhere else,” Rosales said when asked by the Tri-City Record about Begay’s statement to investigators.
“We don’t serve alcohol, and we have security. It’s a drug- and alcohol-free environment,” Rosales said, adding he has been in business since 1977, and always has focused on clean living with no alcohol, drugs or tobacco.
Begay was charged with great bodily harm by vehicle, a third-degree felony; cruelty to animals, a misdemeanor; aggravated DWI, a petty misdemeanor; and failure to maintain traffic lanes, a petty misdemeanor, according to jail records.
The San Juan County Sheriff’s Office was called at 7:39 a.m. Sunday to the area of County Roads 6360 and 6400, where Begay allegedly struck Evangeline Shorty and her dog with his GMC Canyon pickup.
Shorty was seriously injured and had to be “life flighted out,” and her Cane Corso terrier died from its injuries, according to the statement of probable cause.
Begay remained at the scene of the crash and reportedly told investigators that he fell asleep at the wheel and asked if the person he struck was OK. Begay also agreed to a breath test and allegedly had a 0.10 BAC more than an hour after the crash, court records said.
He was arrested and booked into the San Juan County Detention Center and was released into pretrial services the next day.
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