A West Bend man has been charged with hit and run. Prosecutors said he ran over two people, one of whom was already dead, who had been ejected in an earlier crash.
FOND DU LAC, Wis. (AP) — A 19-year-old from West Bend has been qualified in connection with a twist of fate in Fond du Lac County. Jatziel Encarnacion faces a unique hit-and-run rate and serious physical harm. .
Fond du Lac County investigators say just after 1 a.m. on Dec. 31, a silver Chevrolet hit a culvert and rolled over multiple times. Five people were inside and deputies say four of them were ejected from the vehicle. The driver died.
According to the offender’s complaint, the accident occurred on Highway Forty-Five in the town of Auburn in Fond du Lac County. A Fond du Lac County sheriff’s deputy responded to the scene shortly after 1 a. m. He placed the Chevrolet in an agricultural box with significant damage. A user lay in the middle of the road, unconscious but breathing. Emergency Medical Services personnel attended to this individual.
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Occupants of the vehicle involved in the crash included:
Fatal accident in Auburn Township, Fond du Lac County
A criminal complaint states that the Fond du Lac County sheriff’s deputy reported through a Washington County deputy that another person, later known as Grimes, was found dead on the road about 3 miles south of the crash on Highway 45. The Washington County medical examiner said Grimes suffered injuries “consistent with being ejected from a vehicle and/or struck and dragged through a vehicle,” the complaint states.
A witness at the scene of the accident told police he was driving a white Volkswagen and swerved to avoid a frame in the road, according to the complaint. A passenger in the Volkswagen said that after the driver swerved, he looked back and saw the Enautomobilenación car. — a red Mazda — “drove to the scene of the accident. ” The passenger in the Volkswagen said he gave the impression that the red Mazda hit Grimes and “cut” the second victim in the road.
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The complaint states, according to the Volkswagen passenger, that Encarnacion was traveling “about 40-50 mph” when he struck Grimes and the second victim.
Witnesses told police, according to the complaint, that there had been a party near Kewaskum and that most people had brought their own alcohol to the party.
Taya Grimes
According to the complaint, a witness stated that Grimes was at the party and had been drinking. The witness said Enautomobilenacion was “showcasing” its car at the party and that it was “rocking back and forth. “He participated as a passenger in a black Mazda and also arrived at the scene of the accident.
The witness said he heard “a thud or loud noise as the car passed and stopped,” according to the complaint. The witness told the government that it was Enautomobilenation’s car and that he could “clearly” see Grimes’ hoodie underneath Enautomobilenation’s car.
The complaint states that several witnesses told investigators that Enautomobilenación’s car stopped after passing the location, but then left. While any of the victims were on the road when he arrived, prosecutors said only one was still at the scene after he left.
Jatziel Encarnación
Around 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 31, the complaint states Encarnacion walked into the West Bend Police Department to speak with officers about the crash. He admitted to being at an underage drinking party the night before near Kewaskum, according to prosecutors, and admitted to drinking there – but denied purchasing or providing any alcohol to others. The complaint said he did not want to provide any more details about the party, only that he “left the party to drive straight home and he didn’t stop on the way home,” per the complaint.
When questioned more about the crash scene, prosecutors said Encarnacion admitted to driving through the crash site on Highway 45. The complaint states he said he “struck an object” in the road, which he described as quickly going over a speed bump. He consented to a search of the red Mazda he had been driving, and deputies found “signs of blood, hair” on the vehicle – which had exterior damage on all sides. Encarnacion was then arrested.
The Fond du Lac County Sheriff and District Attorney provided an update on an investigation into a fatal twist of fate that occurred on New Year’s Eve. A 19-year-old woman was dragged for miles.
While prosecutors said in testimony that Encarnacion hit Grimes, he is not charged in her death.
“When injuries can occur and you can’t know when those injuries might have occurred or if the evidence suggests they might have happened before something, it becomes tricky to try to tell the jury that convicts someone beyond a moderate limit. “I don’t know what to do,” said Eric Toney, Fond du Lac County District Attorney.
Encarnacion made his initial appearance in Fond du Lac County court on Thursday, Jan. 18. Cash bond was set at $250,000.