Fatal accident update

A motorcyclist was found dead, and an SUV driver found himself behind bars late Saturday following an evening accident at the intersection of U.S. 385 and Crane Avenue.

The motorcyclist, whose identity was withheld by police pending notification of his next of kin, was pronounced dead after his red 2007 Kawasaki Ninja motorcycle collided with an SUV, according to a news release from Odessa Police Cpl. G. A. Hernandez.

According to the release, the police were called at 6:02 p.m. Saturday to the accident.

A green 1996 Ford Explorer driven by 27-year-old Pilar Aldaz Alvarado, of 514 Lindberg St., was heading north on 385 while the motorcyclist was heading south on the outside lane. The release stated that Alvarado failed to yield to the motorcycle's right of way as he tried to make a left turn onto Crane Avenue, causing the two to collide.

After the collision, Alvarado tried to flee the scene, according to the release. He was later caught and arrested, the release stated.

Alvarado remained at the Ector County Detention Center Sunday, charged with manslaughter and failing to stop and render aid in connection to the accident. He was being held on bonds totaling $40,000.

At the scene, the Ninja was left lying on the southbound lane of U.S. 385. The motorcyclist's body was wrapped in red fabric about 20 feet away in between the two lanes, his helmet another 50 feet toward the curb.

The accident was the latest of three fatal motorcycle accidents that occurred Saturday in Odessa. An early-morning crash claimed one life at the 3200 block of Maple Avenue, while a late-morning wreck against a tractor-trailer at Kermit Highway and State Road 1936 in West Odessa took the life of a second motorcyclist.