Driver facing murder charges in alleged illegal drag racing crash

Last Update: 12/08/2009 2:54 pm

Print Story |

< Previous

Next >

Play Video

All Video

Driver facing murder charges in alleged illegal drag racing crash

WICHITA, Kansas – An illegal drag race in Wichita left one driver dead and his alleged competitor behind bars facing murder charges.

Home video provided to KSN showed the fiery aftermath of the alleged illegal drag race down Lincoln. Police say a 19-year-old in a Honda Civic and a 28-year-old man in a Chrysler 300 were speeding east on Lincoln at around 7 a.m. Sunday. Witnesses told officers the Honda was ahead and then the driver of the Chrysler tried to make a move.

“The driver of the Chrysler lost control of the vehicle, fishtailed, struck a curb, went up over the curb, the vehicle flipped and rolled several times and struck a telephone poll on the north side of Lincoln,” said Gordon Bassham with the Wichita Police Department.

When live power lines dropped on the Chrysler it burst into flames. Police say the driver had already been ejected and died when the car rolled on top of him. Police say the 19 year old left the scene, but returned during the investigation.

"He was taken into custody by officers and arrested on suspicion of second-degree murder, resulting from the reckless action of racing,” Bassham said. “He was also arrested for leaving the scene of an accident."

It will be up to the district attorney to decide if they’ll actually go forward with the murder charges in the case against the other driver. Police haven’t released the names of either the victim or the suspect. They say they’ve haven’t been able to confirm the identity of either man yet.

Print Story |

To Email:
Your Name:
Your Email:
Message:
	Send a copy to my email