Deputy on final night of training is killed by suspected drunk driver, Texas cops say

A 29-year-old deputy working his final night of training for a Texas sheriff’s office was struck and killed by a suspected drunk driver, authorities say.

The crash happened Friday, July 29, in Smith County, where Lorenzo Bustos and another deputy were detaining two people following a separate incident, Sheriff Larry Smith said in a briefing streamed by KXAN. Smith County is about 100 miles southeast of Dallas.

At around 12:50 a.m., their cruiser was rear-ended by a 2017 Mercedes traveling at a “moderate speed,” according to the sheriff. Bustos was standing behind the patrol car and was “launched” from the impact of the crash, Smith said.

Bustos suffered serious head injuries and was taken to the hospital, where he died around 6 a.m., the sheriff said. He had been with the sheriff’s office for around six months and was patrolling with his training officer for his final night in training.

“He became to be very loved by all of his cohorts and coworkers and he was doing a great job,” Smith said.

The other deputy, who was also injured, went to check on the driver and passenger inside the Mercedes, and he believed they were intoxicated, according to the sheriff. The driver, identified as 21-year-old Daniel Nyenze Nyabuto, was initially charged with driving while intoxication assault, but Smith said his charges will be upgraded.

Smith said the injured deputy was treated and released from the hospital.

Loves ones remember Bustos — a father of three

Smith said Bustos was a husband and a father to three children, ages 8, 5 and 4. Though he was new with the Smith County Sheriff’s Office, Bustos had previously worked with two other law enforcement agencies, the sheriff said.

Steve Lyles, the executive pastor at Friendly Baptist Church attended by Bustos, called him “one of the nicest people you would ever meet.”

“The thing I remember most about him was he always had a smile on his face,” Lyles told the Tyler Morning Telegraph.

Others remembered Bustos as the “goofy neighbor that always made us laugh” and as the “class clown...(who) took this career so seriously.”

“This young man was absolutely ambitious as the news has stated, had the drive to better himself, learn from everyone and is an example to us all on how we can be better people,” Eli Skinner said in a Facebook post.

This story was originally published August 1, 2022 at 11:03 AM with the headline "Deputy on final night of training is killed by suspected drunk driver, Texas cops say."