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Albuquerque Mom Accused of Fleeing Scene After Toddler Is Ejected in Crash

An Albuquerque woman is accused of driving away after her child was ejected from her vehicle in a freeway crash and has been booked into jail on suspicion of abandonment or abuse of a child.

Albuquerque police say Georgette Vigil, 36, lost control of her SUV, slammed it into a concrete wall on Interstate 40 on Monday evening and then fled the scene of the crash. Vigil's 18-month-old daughter was ejected from the car while strapped in a car seat and left behind on the roadside.

Vigil was arrested and booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center in Albuquerque on Wednesday after being treated for injuries stemming from the crash, police said.

The child sustained cuts but did not suffer any life-threatening injuries and is expected to survive, said Officer Tanner Tixier, a police spokesman.

It was not known Tuesday if Vigil had an attorney, and the public defenders office did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment.

A retired state police officer who saw the crash tracked Vigil to a Southeast Albuquerque apartment complex, police said. On Thursday, the Albuquerque Police Department released body camera footage of officers interviewing Vigil at the complex on Monday following the crash.

The video shows officers asking the mother of two what happened to her head as she approaches the door with a bloodied face. Another child, who police say was also in the vehicle at the time of the crash, comes to the door crying.

"Where is your baby at?" an officer asks Vigil.

"I think it flew out," Vigil says. "I didn't know what to do."

The officer asks Vigil if the toddler was OK, but the mother says she doesn't know. "I just want to go to sleep," Vigil wails.

Vigil admits to police that she had "a pint" to drink about "an hour, 30 minutes" before the accident, repeatedly telling officers "I did wrong."

In 911 recordings released Tuesday, callers reported the vehicle crossed several lanes of traffic before wrecking, and the driver left the scene.

"There's been an accident, and a baby's injured," one caller said. "The SUV was going really fast on the freeway."

She said a number of people had pulled over at the scene before officers and paramedics arrived.

Another caller who told a 911 operator he saw the wreck and was following the vehicle reported it had a rear flat tire and other signs of damage. Another child remained in the vehicle with no seatbelt, he told the operator.

Police later said that child, age 4, suffered minor injuries.

Police are also seeking a man who was in Vigil's vehicle when it crashed and who allegedly ran from the scene. They identified him Tuesday afternoon as James Moquino, 34.

"Officers are continuing to investigate this complicated and heartbreaking case and are still gathering information," Tixier said.

Police have not said how long the child was on the highway before help arrived.

The Children, Youth and Families Department confirmed to NBC affiliate KOB that the 18-month-old child is currently in state custody. The other child is in the custody of a family member, KOB reported.

The Associated Press contributed to this story. 

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