Accused vehicle thief hospitalized

An accused vehicle thief was hospitalized Sunday after crashing a pickup as police pursued, officials said.

Hagerman Police Chief Rachelle Bateman said Abery Miller, 30, of Roswell was flown to Lubbock after the incident near Hagerman.

Bateman said Miller exited the vehicle after the crash and ran “for quite a while” before police captured him. She said he was treated for heat stroke and dehydration, but did not appear to be otherwise injured.

Authorities had been on the lookout for Miller and an accomplice, Joy Estes, 40, of Roswell after pickups were stolen in three different rural communities. Bateman said Estes also ran from the pickup after it crashed in a ditch on Sunday. She was quickly captured.

The incident began when Bateman said police received a call from a woman who claimed she was being held against her will in the pickup.

After the five-mile pursuit ended, Bateman said that woman “ran toward police” while Estes and Miller ran away.

She was not seriously injured and was released after questioning.

Miller and Estes are accused of stealing vehicles in Curry, Roosevelt and Cochran counties.

Both are also charged with unlawful taking of a motor vehicle and receiving or transferring a vehicle in New Mexico.

Estes was being held without bond at the Chaves County jail in Roswell on Tuesday.

Bateman said she wasn’t sure if Miller was still hospitalized on Tuesday but said he will likely be extradited back to Roosevelt County to face charges.