Court details reveal how HPD tied driver to hit-and-run that killed USPS worker in north Houston
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A man accused of causing a hit-and-run crash that killed a postal worker in north Houston lied about his vehicle being stolen, according to police.
New details about how investigators tracked 43-year-old Jesus Natividad Gutierrez down were revealed in probable cause court on Wednesday. He appeared in court again on Thursday, where he was taken back into custody for violating probation.
READ MORE: Driver of SUV charged in death of USPS worker trapped under mail truck in N. Houston hit-and-run
Gutierrez is charged with failure to stop and render aid and filing a false police report. He was released from jail after posting his $105,000 total for both charges.
However, it was revealed in court on Thursday that he was on deferred adjudication for a previous felon in possession of a weapon charge. Since he picked up two new charges within five years of the original charge, the judge signed an order to revoke his deferred adjudication. Gutierrez was taken back into custody, this time with a $45,000 bond.
If he posts his bond for violating probation, Gutierrez will have to wear an ankle monitor.
Just before 3 p.m. Saturday, Houston police said 29-year-old U.S. Postal Service employee Robert Jones was on his normal route in the 8100 block of Bauman Road when an SUV tried to go around his postal truck and another car.
ABC13 obtained surveillance video that shows Jones trying to make a left turn onto Julia Street when the SUV clipped his mail truck, causing it to spin and flip over into a ditch. Jones was ejected and trapped underneath his truck.
Meanwhile, the suspect's car, which police described as a 2011 white Ford Expedition, appears to slow down before driving off.
ORIGINAL REPORT: Postal worker thrown from truck after being hit by driver who fled in north Houston hit-and-run: HPD
ABC13 tracked down the owner of the white SUV, later identified as Gutierrez. He told us that the vehicle seen in the surveillance video was his Ford Expedition, but he wasn't the one driving it.
He claimed his vehicle was stolen from a Walmart parking lot, and even said he was open to doing an interview with ABC13 about what happened.
That's the same story Gutierrez told police, according to court paperwork. He even filed a police report about it.
In an update on Wednesday, investigators said Gutierrez was actually lying. Police reportedly found surveillance video that shows the suspect leaving a Walmart parking lot in his SUV -- the same location where he said it was stolen.
Police said additional surveillance video shows Gutierrez driving home in the same vehicle after he allegedly hit and killed the postal worker.
SEE ALSO: Postal worker killed in hit-and-run wreck leaves behind 4-year-old daughter, family tells ABC13
Police praised witnesses who were seen on surveillance footage running to try and save Jones while others are seen chasing after the suspect's SUV.
Paramedics transported Jones to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
According to family members, Jones worked for the USPS for seven years and loved his job more than anything. He leaves behind a 4-year-old daughter, whom family members described as his entire world.
"You had no regard for human life at all," J'La Jones, the victim's wife, told ABC13. "You didn't have to do that. You could have at least stopped and seen if he was OK, and called 911. You did nothing. You didn't care about his life, his family, nothing, or what your actions were going to do."
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