22-year-old dies in crash including 2 trucks at auto dealership
ELKHART, Ind. (WISH) — A 22-year-old man died after the fast-moving SUV he was driving early Monday collided with another SUV and also hit at least two trucks at an auto dealership, the Elkhart Police Department says.
Braxton Smith, 22, died at a local hospital after the crash, police say. Smith was from the Elkhart County town of Bristol, which is east of Elkhart.
The crash of the SUVs happened about 12:15 a.m. Monday in a commercial area near the intersection of California Road/Mishawaka Street and North Nappanee Street. An off-duty Elkhart police officer in a marked squad car had observed Smith’s Honda CRV “traveling at a high rate of speed near Elkhart High School” shortly before the crash.
The CRV hit a GMC Envoy. Four people in the Envoy were hurt, and one was taken to a hospital with injuries not believed to be life-threatening, police say.
The CRV was heavily damaged and lying on its roof in the grass southeast of the intersection after the crash. Investigators think the CRV struck multiple objects including a utility pole, a tree, a light pole and two Ford F-150 trucks at Lochmandy Auto Group, which is on the southwest corner of the intersection.
The crash site is about a 30-minute drive east of downtown South Bend in northern Indiana.
Anyone with any information was asked to contact Michiana Crime Stoppers at 574-288-7867, michianacrimestoppers.com or the Elkhart Police Department.