Pickup driver arrested after crash with cyclists killed 2 and injured 17 others

By Chris Boyette and Hannah Sarisohn, CNN

A man who drove a pickup into a group of bicyclists over the weekend, killing two and injuring 17 others, was arrested on manslaughter and assault charges, police in Arizona said.

Pedro Quintana-Lujan drove a truck that crashed into a group of cyclists Saturday on the Cotton Lane Bridge in Goodyear, about 28 miles west of Phoenix, according to Goodyear police.

Twenty cyclists from a local club were on a ride when the crash happened, police said. The two cyclists who died were Karen Malisa, 61, of Goodyear, and David Kero, 65, of Michigan, police said.

Of the 17 others who were hurt, one was in critical condition on Monday, according to police.

Quintana-Lujan, 26, was booked on two counts of manslaughter, three counts of aggravated assault, 18 counts of endangerment, and two counts of causing serious injury or death by a moving violation, according to Goodyear police. Police said he remained at the scene after the crash.

“There is no indication that this was an intentional act or anything other than an isolated incident,” Goodyear Police Chief Santiago Rodriguez said Monday. The cause of the crash still is under investigation, police said.

Maricopa County jail records show Quintana-Lujan was held on $250,000 bond and has a court date on Friday. It is unclear if he has obtained an attorney or remains in custody.

“The Goodyear Police Department is deeply saddened by this tragedy and extends condolences to the loved ones of the victims as well as to the cycling community and the community as a whole,” police said in a release.

CNN has reached out to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office for more information.

Nationally, 938 cyclists were killed in crashes with motorized vehicles in 2020, according to data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2023 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

CNN’s Eric Levenson and Andy Rose contributed to this report.