A truck driver from El Salvador who was driving on a suspended license is jailed without bond this (Thursday) morning, charged with three felonies for Monday’s horrific deadly head-on collision between a tractor trailer and a U-haul on I-70.
Boone County prosecutors have charged 26-year-old Walter Montejo with two felony counts of involuntary manslaughter and with felony second degree assault. He’s also charged with a misdemeanor count of driving while revoked.
A court filing from Boone County prosecutors says Montejo is in the United States “temporarily on a work visa.” That two-page court filing describes Montejo as a flight risk, saying he has no known ties to Boone County.
CPD investigators say the two victims who died were in the U-haul rental truck. Columbia Police say the U-haul driver, 54-year-old Cindy Helms of Tennessee, was pronounced dead at a local hospital. CPD identifies the U-haul passenger as 84-year-old Melvina Colin of Colorado, who was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Columbia Police Department’s two-page probable cause statement quotes witnesses driving behind the tractor trailer and a BMW before the crash as saying the Freightliner was in the passing lane and that the BMW was in the driving lane. Court documents quote drivers behind the crash as saying that the tractor trailer “entered the driving lane and struck the BMW” and that the Freightliner was traveling at a high rate of speed prior to the crash. Once they collided, the Freightliner crossed the median and struck several vehicles, including the U-haul, according to court documents.
Monday’s crash closed much of I-70 near the Business Loop exit for hours. CPD describes its investigation as ongoing: they encourage anyone with information about the crash to call Columbia Crimestoppers at (573) 875-TIPS.
