Inset left: Gabriel Rosas (San Antonio Police Department). Inset right: Margaret Ureste (Sunset Memorial Park & Funeral Home). Background: San Antonio police officers speak with Rosas following the crash at a Walmart in San Antonio, Texas, in April 2024 (KSAT/YouTube).
A man in Texas has learned where he will be spending his coming years for driving drunk outside of the Walmart where he worked and hitting a co-worker who was leaving for the day, killing her.
Gabriel Rosas was 20 years old when he struck 49-year-old Margaret Ureste in April 2024. He was sentenced on Tuesday to 20 years in prison for intoxication manslaughter, the maximum penalty, after reaching a plea deal with prosecutors.
San Antonio police officers arrived at the Walmart in the city on 2100 Southeast Loop 410 Access Road to find the injured and unresponsive Ureste. Rosas was also there, with video from local ABC affiliate KSAT showing officers speaking with the detained man on that late April day.
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Ureste was taken to an area hospital — and later pronounced dead on May 1, 2024.
Investigators learned that Rosas "had consumed alcohol during his lunch break" on the day of the crash, the Bexar County District Attorney's Office announced. As Ureste left the store at the end of her shift and walked through the parking lot, Rosas "struck her with his vehicle."
"This case is a reminder of the life-altering consequences that stem from drinking and driving," Bexar County District Attorney Joe Gonzales said. "We are thankful the court recognized the gravity of this offense and delivered justice for Margaret's family."
According to her obituary, Ureste had worked as a retail associate at Walmart for six years before her death. "When she was not working, she enjoyed being with her family, going out, or just simply relaxing on the sofa playing on her phone," it adds. She left behind three children.
