Man killed in I‑17 hit‑and‑run
by Ambria Hammel

ANTHEM – The second of two serious accidents on I‑17 near Anthem Way one night last week has DPS officers looking for the driver responsible for the fatal hit and run. That driver faces felony charges for leaving the scene of a fatal accident.

“If you choose not to stop, you’re going to go to jail,” said DPS Detective Tim Mason.

The four‑part accident occurred at 4:03 a.m. June 2 after a man in his mid 20s was fatally struck by an unidentified vehicle while tending to a blown tire on the shoulder of northbound I‑17 one mile north of Anthem Way. The victim landed in the right travel lane where Mason said it is unclear whether an 18‑wheeler, whose driver saw the body and traveled through the crime scene, also hit it.

There is physical evidence, however, that the victim was struck by a sedan and a motorcycle. The motorcycle driver was wearing a helmet, but, according to Daisy Mountain Fire Department Captain Dennis Tyrrell, was thrown approximately 50 feet and then air lifted to John C. Lincoln Hospital North Mountain in critical condition.

Mason said none of the drivers who stopped were cited. The one who fled, however, faces charges. Mason asks the community to keep an ear out for any information regarding the accident and report it to DPS Vehicular Crimes Unit at (602) 223‑2000.

The first accident occurred the night before, June 1, at approximately 8:20 p.m. on southbound I‑17 south of Anthem Way where a full‑size pickup truck hauling lawn equipment collided with a semi‑truck. The impact caused the semi to break through a nearby fence and wall and come to rest on its left side in the parking lot of a strip mall. The pickup rolled over causing the driver to be air lifted to John C. Lincoln Hospital North Mountain with head trauma. The driver of the semi refused treatment on scene.

The southbound lanes of I‑17 were closed at Anthem Way for about four hours. DPS diverted traffic through Anthem. A little more than eight hours later, the second accident also closed the freeway for approximately four hours during rush hour.