Logan Almodova had just turned 16 in September 2026, was applying for his first job and was looking forward to taking his driver's license test when he died on Oct. 2, the day after he was found with serious injuries on the road in the southeast Valley suburb of San Tan Valley, his mother said.
The Pinal County Sheriff's Office is seeking information about the incident. Sheriff's deputies investigating, "believe at this moment," Logan was hit by a car, Megan Almodova, the boy's mother, said in an interview with The Arizona Republic.
Deputies found the teen with life-threatening injuries on Murray Grey Drive, near Empire Boulevard and Gary Road, at around 11:30 p.m. Oct. 1, the Sheriff's Office said earlier.
The night the teen was found, three boys
were taken into custody for questioning and released. “All of the subjects knew each other,” Sheriff's Office spokesperson Samuel Salzwedel said.
Officials are seeking information about the incident. Anyone with information should call 520-866-5111 and ask for Detective Ramon Gonzalez, Salzwedel said.
16-year-old boy 'just starting his life'
Logan was surrounded by family when he died at Banner Desert Medical Center, after being airlifted to the hospital's trauma center, Almodova said.
Logan had just turned 16 on Sept. 4. The family celebrated with a dozen Bosa donuts, his favorites.
"He was a 16-year-old boy who was just starting his life," Almodova said. "He was the most loving individual. He spoke his mind when he wanted to and sometimes didn't have a filter. We loved him very much. He was just getting started, and he was taken from this world way too soon."
Logan was homeschooled and found it easier to learn online, where he was "not getting interrupted by other students and distracting the teachers and getting off topic," Almodova said. "He was such a better student when he could just remain focused on one topic at a time."
He recently started looking for his first job and was not picky about where he applied, Almodova said.
"He was applying everywhere, and he really wanted to find something," Almodova said. "Unfortunately, it's hard for a 16-year-old boy to be hired due to the fact that everybody thinks that they're lazy and that they are not gonna work, but he was driven."
Logan was also taking driving lessons and was on track to take his driver's license test in November, Almodova said.
Logan loved fishing, Almodova said. Once a month, he accompanied his grandfather to fish for striped bass, he called strippies, on a boat on Lake Pleasant, Almodova said. He also fished for bluegill, gillies, with friends at a catch-and-release pond in the Johnson Ranch community. He always used hot dogs as bait, she said.
He also loved to cook and learned how to make his favorite foods watching videos on YouTube and TikTok, Almodova said. Every single morning, he made an egg sandwich and "was getting really good about making it just perfect with the right amount of bacon and just the amount of right of cheese," she said.
"His favorite thing to make was hamburgers. He absolutely loved steak. He was really good at making chicken fingers," Almodova said.
He also liked to play video games online with his friends.
A GoFundMe account has been created to help the family cover expenses.
Almodova thanked the Sheriff's Office for their work investigating the incident and the first responders who arrived at the scene.
"I can tell you Pinal County Sheriff's have been absolutely fantastic. They have been so great in communicating with us. They've been just out here in our community, and we are grateful for everything that they've done," Almodova said. "The first officer on scene, we cannot thank him enough for all that he did. And even the ambulance and the fire department that came out when the first initial incident occurred. We just can't thank them enough for everything that they did."
Logan is survived by a younger brother, and the two were just 11 months apart, Almodova said. He is also survived by his father, Armando Almodova.
"He was absolutely loved by his friends and his family, and he is absolutely missed," Megan Almodova said. "He was taken away too soon from us. He was just a great kid."
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Family mourns death of teen boy found injured on San Tan Valley road
