Truck driver accused of DUI in crash that killed 3 motorcyclists
A semi-truck driver whose truck hit and killed three motorcyclists near Laughlin on Saturday was impaired and drove the wrong way, the Nevada Highway Patrol alleged Tuesday.
Claude Rafiki, of Grand Rapids, Michigan, was booked into the Clark County Detention Center on several charges, including three counts each of DUI and reckless driving causing death or substantial bodily harm. The 29-year-old remained jailed Tuesday, according to logs.
The crash occurred about 2:40 p.m. on state Route 163 near the Nevada state line with California and Arizona, officials said.
Rafiki’s Freightliner crossed the center median and went into wrong-way traffic, hitting two motorcycles carrying three riders, officials said.
The Clark County coroner’s office identified two of the victims as Owen Hart, 22, and Jeremy Gebo, 44.
In a news release, Nevada State Police named the third person killed as Athena Faye Taylor, 21. All three victims were from Saint George, Utah.
A total of 22 people have died on Nevada highways this year, state troopers noted.
Contact Ricardo Torres-Cortez at rtorres@reviewjournal.com.
