Two young children were among those killed on State Route 260, while two other people suffered serious injuries.
HEBER-OVERGAARD, AZ — Four people, including two young children, were killed in a head-on crash on State Route 260 in eastern Arizona on Labor Day, and the driver of a pickup truck was later arrested on manslaughter and aggravated assault charges, authorities said.
The collision happened around 12:30 p.m. Sept. 7 near milepost 300, several miles west of Heber. The Arizona Department of Public Safety identified the people who died as Giovanni Uballe Huerta, 26, of Laveen; Kiah Jae Begaye, 26, of Mesa; a 4-year-old boy from Mesa; and a 2-year-old girl from Mesa. Authorities have not publicly detailed the relationships among the four victims.
All four were traveling in a passenger vehicle that collided head-on with a pickup truck, according to state authorities and local reporting. Emergency crews responding to the crash found the four occupants of the passenger vehicle dead. Officials have not released a final determination of what caused the collision.
Two other people traveling in the pickup, a 21-year-old woman and a 14-year-old boy from New Mexico, suffered serious injuries. They were flown by helicopter to hospitals in the Phoenix area for treatment. Authorities had not released updated information about their conditions as of Wednesday.
The pickup driver was identified as Jesse David Lovato, 21, of Los Lunas, New Mexico. The Arizona Department of Public Safety said Lovato was booked into the Navajo County Detention Center in Holbrook on four counts of manslaughter and two counts of aggravated assault. The charges are allegations, and the filing of charges does not establish guilt.
Authorities have not announced a final cause of the crash. The Arizona Department of Public Safety has said impairment has not been ruled out, while its Vehicular Crimes Unit continues to investigate. Officials have not publicly released findings establishing impairment or another specific factor as the cause.
The crash forced State Route 260 to close in both directions for several hours Monday as emergency crews worked at the scene and investigators examined the roadway. The closure caused significant traffic backups before the highway reopened later that evening.
Initial reports from the Forest Lakes Fire District said four people had died and two others had been flown to hospitals. State authorities released the victims’ identities and information about Lovato’s arrest the following day as investigators continued examining the circumstances surrounding the collision.
The Arizona Department of Public Safety investigation remained active Wednesday. No final crash report or additional findings about the cause had been announced, and authorities had not released further information about the two hospitalized passengers.
Author note: Last updated September 9, 2026.