Utah woman fatally stabbed and thrown off her car on highway after picking up stranger, 18, who was high on LSD
A woman from Utah was fatally stabbed and thrown from her car on Interstate 15 after she gave a ride to an 18-year-old high on LSD, according to reports. The suspect, Oscar Cuevas-Landa, on Monday, August 17, was charged by the Utah Highway Patrol on first-degree felony murder and second-degree aggravated assault charges resulting in serious injury. The woman, who has not been identified pending notification of her family, was reportedly in her 20s, authorities stated. Her body was found on Sunday night, August 16, just before 10 pm on the inside lane of I-15 in Farmington, according to The Standard Examiner. Officials have alleged that the woman had agreed to give a ride to Cuevas-Landa to a place nearly 30 minutes away in West Valley City. The victim and the 18-year-old were strangers, reports state.
Cuevas-Landa, during the trip, reportedly became upset after he thought that the woman was giving him an unnecessary look and allegedly stabbed her, later pushing her from the moving vehicle. A police affidavit stated: "Based on the current evidence, [Cuevas-Land] got a ride with a person (he) did not know. During that journey [he] stated that the victim looked at him funny, so he stabbed the victim several times and then pushed the driver from a vehicle moving at freeway speeds."
"Witnesses said they saw the moving erratically in traffic and almost impacting the median. A short time later witnesses stated a person or what appeared to be a body came out of the vehicle on the driver side," the affidavit said, according to Deseret News. Cuevas-Landa then steered the vehicle from the passenger seat as it continued moving for another 300 yard before halting, authorities said.
The 18-year-old then walked out of the car and attempted to walk away from the scene. He was later located by authorities at the intersection of State and Main. "The deputy observed the individual had blood on his hand, forearm, and pants," Deseret News reported. At the time Cuevas-Landa was found by officials, he was without a t-shirt and was wearing just one shoe.
Cuevas-Landa initially told officials that he was a robber, however, he later confessed to the crime after waiving his Miranda rights, according to reports. The teen told troopers that he had stabbed the woman seven times, unbuckled her seat belt, and pushed her out of the moving vehicle. It is not yet known whether the victim died of the stab wounds or of the fall.
UHP LT. Nick Street told Standard-Examiner: "We believe the male began stabbing the female and she was either trying to escape and jumped out at freeway speed or the suspect was able to kick her out. We are not sure if it was the stabbing or the fall or a combination of both that was the cause of death."
Cuevas-Landa also allegedly admitted to smoking marijuana and taking LSD around the time he entered the woman's car. The teen has been currently booked into Davis County prison without bail.