A 21-year-old man is facing multiple felony charges after allegedly driving drunk and high before causing a deadly crash on Interstate 10 in west Phoenix that killed a six-year-old girl and seriously injured a two-year-old child.
According to the Arizona Department of Public Safety (DPS), Turatsinze Gadi was driving a Toyota Tundra pickup truck at high speed on Sunday evening, weaving in and out of traffic, before crashing into a Toyota Corolla and fleeing the scene.
Court records show Gadi has been booked into jail on charges including second-degree murder, endangerment, aggravated assault, and failure to remain at the scene of a fatal accident, per KTVK
Witnesses told troopers they saw the pickup speeding recklessly before slamming into the Corolla from behind. The impact caused “significant” damage to the passenger side of the smaller car, investigators said. After the collision, the Corolla spun into the median wall while Gadi’s truck struck the barrier wall multiple times.
Instead of stopping, Gadi continued driving eastbound onto the Loop 202 freeway and eventually pulled into a QuikTrip gas station about two miles away. Troopers found him there, showing clear signs of intoxication. He was arrested and taken to a hospital, where tests revealed a blood alcohol concentration of 0.219, nearly three times the legal limit. Toxicology results also detected THC, the active component of marijuana.
During questioning, Gadi told investigators he had been drinking beer and tequila earlier in the day while celebrating his girlfriend’s birthday at his home in Avondale. He claimed that another car had “brake-checked” him, causing the collision. Detectives, however, said physical evidence and witness accounts contradict that explanation.
Gadi admitted to being “a three or four” on a scale of ten when asked how intoxicated he felt at the time of the crash. He told investigators he left his truck and walked to the QuikTrip because he was in shock and wanted to speak to his girlfriend.
During his initial court appearance on Monday, Gadi broke down in tears, telling the judge, “I’m so sorry,” twice before being led away. This is not Gadi’s first encounter with law enforcement. Court records show he was convicted of speeding on the same stretch of I-10 just six months earlier, when he was caught driving 105 miles per hour.
He is currently being held in the Maricopa County Jail on a $500,000 cash-only bond as the investigation continues. Prosecutors have described the case as a tragic example of the deadly consequences of driving under the influence.