Truck driver faces DUI charges after crashing into taxi near Strip
A semitrailer driver is facing DUI charges after a head-on crash with a cab that left six injured, including three people with serious to life-threatening injuries, Las Vegas police said Thursday.
The crash happened about 9 p.m. Wednesday.
Bernard Tropp, a 44-year-old Las Vegan, suffered minor injuries and was booked into the Clark County Detention Center. He faces three counts of driving under the influence and one count for not stopping after the crash, jail logs show. He ran off from the crash, police said, but Metro found him later thanks to a witness who followed him.
Tropp was heading south on Dean Martin Drive, south of Hotel Rio Drive, in a 2008 Peterbilt semitrailer pulling a flatbed trailer when he entered the two-way turn lane and started heading into the northbound lanes, Metro said. The Union Cab, a 2012 Dodge Caravan, was northbound when the driver, Hailemariam Wolde, 45, tried to miss the truck and swerved into the two-way turn lane but crashing head on.
The cab passengers, all from Calgary, Canada, sustained moderate to critical injuries and were taken to University Medical Center, police said. Sammy Elrafih, 22, was listed in critical condition, Anisha Sharma, 21, and Sarah Nhung, 24, suffered serious injuries, and Steven Kwan, 23, suffered moderate injuries.
Contact Ricardo Torres at rtorres@reviewjournal.com and 702-383-0381. Find him on Twitter: @rickytwrites.
