Mazda split in half after driver allegedly hits it at 81 mph in Bonneville County
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IDAHO FALLS — A Mazda 3 was reportedly split in half in a vehicle accident. After law enforcement investigated the incident, a Bonneville County man was arrested.
John Conrad Anderson II, 48, has been charged with one count of aggravated driving while reckless and one count of malicious injury to property.
On June 27, court documents say deputies from the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office were dispatched to a car accident at the intersection of East 49th North and North 25th East. When law enforcement arrived, they reportedly found a silver Mazda 3 had “been split completely in half.”
The front half of the vehicle was in the intersection, while the back half of the vehicle was about 90 feet away, documents report.
The Mazda had allegedly been hit by a Ford pickup driven by Anderson, according to court documents.
The driver of the Mazda suffered minor injuries and was taken to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center for treatment.
When speaking with Anderson at the scene, Anderson reportedly told law enforcement he was traveling westbound when he allegedly collided with the victim, who was traveling southbound. When asked if the light at the intersection was green or red, court documents say Anderson could not recall.
Court documents report Anderson did not show any signs of impairment. He was cited at the scene for failure to obey a red signal.
On June 28, deputies were contact by a witness who said that minutes before the crash, they had allegedly seen Anderson’s vehicle driving east on East 49th North around 90 to 100 miles per hour in a 25 MPH construction zone. He allegedly nearly hit a pedestrian. The witness reported Anderson’s vehicle also allegedly blew “through a closed road sign and stop sign at Ammon Road without breaking,” court documents state.
On July 6, deputies obtained a warrant for the data in the event recorder in Anderson’s Ford, documents report. According to the data, five seconds before the crash, Anderson had allegedly been driving 107 MPH and at the time of the crash, he had been driving 81 MPH. Data also reported that 1.8 seconds prior to the crash, Anderson had allegedly been accelerating.
On July 7, deputies followed up with the victim, who reported she had five staples for a wound on her head, had been diagnosed with a concussion and suffered pain in her shoulders, collarbone and hip due to alignment issues.
Based off the new evidence, a warrant was filed for Anderson’s arrest. He was arrested on Sept. 22.
Anderson has been appointed a public defender. The Idaho State Public Defender’s Office does not comment on active cases.
He is set to appear in court next Oct. 6 for a preliminary hearing.
If found guilty of the charges, Anderson may face up to 20 years confinement and may be required to pay fines of up to $6,000.
Although Anderson has been charged with these crimes, it does not necessarily mean he committed them. Everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty.