Coroner IDs Marengo woman killed in alleged DUI crash outside Woodstock

A Marengo woman was identified Monday by the McHenry County Coroner’s Office as the victim of a fatal car crash outside Woodstock last week that police said involved a man who was driving while intoxicated.

Mabel Esquivel, 44, was the woman killed in the incident, which occurred Wednesday on Route 176, west of Sunnyside Road, according to the coroner and McHenry County Sheriff’s Office.

Preliminary findings by the coroner’s office show blunt force trauma as her cause of death and results of toxicology on Esquivel are pending, according to a news release.

Esquivel was the passenger in a red 2019 Dodge Challenger driven by a 44-year-old Marengo man, while the vehicle was traveling west on Route 176, the sheriff’s office said last week.

Court records indicate the man’s name is Sergio Esquivel. The McHenry County Sheriff’s Office provided an incorrect last name last week.

Sergio Esquivel was charged with driving under the influence and improper lane use following the crash, which occurred after the Dodge crossed the roadway’s center line for unknown reasons and struck an eastbound gray 2016 Mazda 6 driven by a 27-year-old Union woman, according to court records and the sheriff’s office.

The Union woman and a 4-year-old boy, who was her passenger, were taken to Northwestern Medicine Woodstock Hospital, and the child was later taken to Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago with serious injuries.

Sergio Esquivel also was hospitalized following the incident. Sheriff’s officials did not respond Monday when asked whether he, the other motorist or her passenger have been released from the hospital.

Two dogs were inside the Mazda at the time of the crash, and one died while the other was taken to an emergency veterinarian for observation.

Both occupants of the Dodge were not wearing seat belts, but the driver of the Mazda was wearing a seatbelt and the 4-year-old was restrained in a child safety seat, according to the sheriff’s office.

Correction: This article has been updated to correct the last name of the Marengo man charged with driving under the influence. His name is Sergio Esquivel.