13-year-old driving stolen car intentionally hits bicyclist, killing him, NM officials say

A 13-year-old was arrested after being accused of intentionally crashing a stolen car into a bicyclist who was on his way to work, New Mexico officials said.

In the early morning hours of May 29, 2024, a 13-year-old was driving a stolen car with an 11-year-old and 15-year-old as passengers when they came across 63-year-old Scott Dwight Habermehl, according to a March 17 news release by the Albuquerque Police Department. McClatchy News is not identifying the boys involved given their ages.

Habermehl was on his way to his job at the Sandia National Laboratory when he was hit, officials said.

He “loved his wife and children and was devoted to them deeply and continually,” according to his obituary. He is remembered for his groundbreaking engineering work, developing “techniques that are still used to this day for national security and space applications.” He also spent his free time riding horses, growing his wildflower garden at the entrance of his home and reading beside his wife.

The boys in the car videotaped the 13-year-old driver swerving into the bike lane, despite seeing the flashing lights on the bike, officials said.

The video’s audio captured the kids’ plan to hit Habermehl, with one person saying, “Just bump him, brah,” before another kid responded, “Like bump him?” to which another child responds “Yeah, just bump him. Go like.. 15…20,” officials said.

In the video the 11-year-old can be seen waving a handgun and laughing when Habermehl is hit, officials said.

Months later, officers got an anonymous tip that the video of the crash had been posted to social media, officials said. Those posts helped investigators identify the boys involved.

The 13-year-old and 15-year-old face charges of an open count of murder, conspiracy to commit murder, leaving the scene of an accident involving great bodily harm or death and unlawful possession of a handgun by a person, among several other charges, officials said.

The 11-year-old is too young to be charged with murder, according to officials, but the District Attorney’s Office will determine what charges he may face and whether he can be held on those charges.

The 13-year-old was arrested and booked into the Juvenile Detention Center while officers were still looking for the 15-year-old and the 11-year-old as of March 17, officials said.

McClatchy News reached out to Albuquerque Police for additional information and was awaiting a response March 19.

This story was originally published March 19, 2025 at 10:25 AM with the headline "13-year-old driving stolen car intentionally hits bicyclist, killing him, NM officials say."