SAN ANTONIO — An off-duty BCSO deputy and two others are dead after a wrong-way driver crashed into a car early Sunday morning on the far south-side of San Antonio, police say.
Police received a call about a driver in a F-150 heading north in the southbound lanes of I-37 close to Loop 1604 just before 2 a.m.
A few minutes later, police say the driver of the F-150 crashed into a black 2024 Ford Mustang close to Loop 410 and flipped over and caught fire.
The driver of the Mustang was identified as 20-year-old BCSO Deputy Meredith Portillo and she, along with 28-year-old Jorge Luis Pargas Jr., who was driving the F-150, were pronounced dead at the scene.
One passenger of the Mustang died in the ambulance and the other was taken to a local hospital where police say they are in critical condition.
Loved ones told KENS 5 the young detention worker was enjoying a girl's night out before she was killed. According to Portillo's mother, the 20-year-old rode scooters and grabbed burgers downtown with two high school friends. Portillo was just a few minutes from home when her car was struck by the pick-up truck, loved ones say.
Sheriff Javier Salazar said her death has been heartbreaking for the entire department.
"We've got a beautiful young lady, great officer and obviously a beloved member of two families right, her birth family and her family in blue so this is a huge blow," Salazar said. “It’s that much more heartbreaking to know that this young lady – all she wanted to do was serve her community.”
He said he spoke with Portillo's father Sunday morning.
"His first comments to me were, 'Sheriff she really enjoyed serving your agency' and sorry, as a dad, that's heartbreaking but also as a boss it does your heart good to hear that," Salazar said.
Over the phone, Portillo’s mother told KENS 5 her daughter was a "wonderful mentor" to coworkers and inmates. She worked at the jail for half a year, but family members say Portillo touched many lives.
Salazar said he has resources available for both the family and fellow deputies who are grieving. He said the department will find a way to honor Deputy Portillo's life.
"Anybody that is willing to put on this badge and serve is absolutely a hero in my book and she'll always be remembered that way," Salazar said.
On Tuesday, BCSO honored Deputy Portillo's life with a police escort from the medical examiner's office to Mission Park South Funeral Home where her body will be laid to rest with an American flag draped over her.
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