Man arrested following multi-vehicle crashes, fatal auto-pedestrian crash

WEST VALLEY CITY — A man who caused multiple crashes resulting in at least one fatality Saturday night has been detained by police after attempting to run on foot.

Lt. Robert Brinton with West Valley City police said the driver, who is in his mid-20s, first caused a two-car crash at 3100 South and Redwood Road in West Valley City, leaving the drivers with minor injuries. Following that first crash, officers said the driver fled the scene southbound and continued driving.

Brinton said the man then caused another crash at 4100 South and Redwood Road, where he went through the intersection and struck a pedestrian. Police originally said two people had been hit but later clarified that just one person was hit.

Brinton said it appears that the driver who was fleeing ran a red light when he hit the pedestrian and caused a car crossing the intersection to hit the truck, which led to a chain reaction involving a total of five cars.

The pedestrian, an adult man, is deceased. Brinton said another man who is an acquaintance of the deceased man was also at the scene. He was unharmed and police were giving him care and planning to interview him.

The woman driving the vehicle going westbound was transported to a hospital in critical condition, and Saturday night police were looking for relatives of an uninjured 2-year-old child in the car with the woman, Brinton said.

Other injuries from this crash were minor and came mainly from seat belts and airbags, he said.

Brinton said the driver of the pickup truck then abandoned his vehicle, which they say was reported stolen, and attempted to flee on foot. However, nearby officers with the Taylorsville Police Department assisting on another call were able to capture the man and he is now in custody.

Police did not release the identity of the man who was arrested, nor that of the man who was hit and killed. Brinton said the man who caused the crashes was being evaluated at a hospital Saturday prior to being brought to the police station.

Due to this fatal crash, 4100 South and Redwood Road was closed in all directions on Saturday evening. Brinton said they expected the closure would last two or three hours.