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Fifty-two-year-old Daniel Piedra Garcia was shot in the head last Friday (June 16) by a woman identified as Phoebe Copas. Garcia, who was placed on life support following the shooting, fought for his life until recently. Garcia’s family decided to remove him from life support on Wednesday, June 21, 2023, and the Uber driver passed away.
Phoebe Copas, 48, claimed that she shot the driver after assuming that she was being kidnapped. Copas faces several charges, including felony aggravated assault causing serious bodily injury. However, the charges have been upgraded to murder following the victim's death.
Piedra Garcia’s niece Didi Lopez explained how shocking the incident was, and that the family is still not able to process the loss. The victim was described as a “loving man” who had no children of his own but many godchildren.
Phoebe Copas allegedly shot an Uber driver in the head after she assumed that she was being kidnapped
The tragic incident happened on Friday, June 16, 2023, when Copas allegedly shot Garcia in the head on US 54 near Loop 375. Copas further mentioned that she thought she was getting kidnapped after she noticed an exit sign for Juarez, Mexico. According to the victim’s niece Didi Lopez, stereotypes about the border possibly led to Garcia’s death.
Didi said:
“It was just shocking, hard to believe, a lot of us had seen the news, but we never even imagined. It never crossed our mind that it was going to be him. He was really excited to be driving for Uber. He was already providing for his family; not only that, he was meeting so many people.”
She further stated:
“They make assumptions. They see stuff, maybe on the news, maybe on social media, and stuff that’s not necessarily true, and when they come here, they come without really knowing.”
Lopez additionally spoke about Phoebe Copas’ actions and said that she should have called the authorities if she felt threatened, instead of pulling the trigger. She also explained how neurologists confirmed that they could do nothing more for the victim. Thus, on Wednesday, the family decided to take Garcia off life support.
The victim was reportedly the sole provider for his family
Authorities have arrested Phoebe Copas, and she is currently being held on a bond of $1 million. Uber has reportedly reached out to the victim’s family and confirmed that they would provide for whatever the family needed. On June 16, Phoebe was reportedly traveling to meet her boyfriend at Speaking Rock Casino, when the horrific incident took place.
A GoFundMe page was created to meet the victim’s medical expenses, as well as funeral expenses. Piedra Garcia has been described as the “sole provider” of his family. The fundraiser post further read:
“He was very happy to finally be able to work and bring home income for this tragedy to happen. Today, we unfortunately had to disconnect my husband as the doctors did not give any chance that he would survive.”
It has currently received more than 1,400 donations and has raised over $44,000. After shooting the victim, Phoebe Copas reportedly sent the picture of the incident to her partner and then dialed 911.
