On a regular Thursday night, tragedy struck on the roads of Austin. The Austin Police Department reported a serious collision at the 1700 block of South Pleasant Valley Road involving an SUV and a motorcycle. The motorcyclist, Eliasib Cortes Vargas, sustained injuries that, despite a quick medical response, led to him being pronounced deceased at the local hospital. The incident took place at 9:19 p.m. on June 12, as confirmed by a press release from the City of Austin.
Authorities identified the SUV driver as 54-year-old Thomas Ajanel Chan, who was arrested post-crash and now faces a charge of Driving While Intoxicated. The Austin Police noted that additional charges are pending in the wake of the fatal incident. This accident marks Austin’s 43rd fatal crash of the year, contrasting starkly with last year’s 34 fatal crashes, which resulted in 35 deaths by the same date.
The Vehicular Homicide Unit of APD is handling the investigation of this case. Information from the preliminary reports suggest the SUV collided with Vargas’s motorcycle, leading to the fatal outcome. The APD cautions that details surrounding the fatality may change as the investigation continues…