According to police, a man was apprehended in connection with an accident in a Phoenix suburb that killed two bicyclists and injured 11 others.
Pedro Quintana-Lujan, 26, was arrested on suspicion of two counts of manslaughter, three counts of aggravated assault, 18 counts of endangering, and two counts of inflicting substantial harm or death, according to Goodyear police. The driver was released and the investigation is ongoing with charges are pending.
County Attorney Rachel Mitchell said in a statement, “…It is critical before making any charging decision, and triggering legal time constraints, that a full investigation is completed and provided to prosecutors for review.”
At 8 a.m. on February 25, a pickup truck towing a trailer collided with a large group of Arizona bikers on a busy highway near the Cotton Lane Bridge. The bridge is located approximately 19 miles west of Phoenix.
According to a police spokesman, Lisa Berry, the driver, Quintana-Lujan, remained at the scene and cooperated with authorities in their investigation.
Berry said the first victim was a female bicyclist, 61-year-old Karen Malisa of Goodyear, who died at the scene. The second victim was 65-year-old David Kero, who was on a visit from Michigan and died in the hospital.
Court documents say that Quintana-Lujan told cops that his “steering locked and the truck began drifting.” He admitted to smoking marijuana 11 hours before the accident.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 932 cyclists were killed in motor vehicle collisions in the United States in 2020.
