Truck Driver Accused Of Causing I-70 Crash Ordered To Stand Trial

JEFFERSON COUNTY, CO — A semitruck driver who's accused of causing a deadly crash on Interstate 70 in April has been ordered to stand trial, a judge ruled. Four people were killed in the fiery crash in Lakewood.

Rogel Lazaro Aguilera-Mederos, 23, has been charged with 41 counts, including four counts of vehicular homicide.

Aguilera-Mederos is accused of driving recklessly on I-70 before he crashed into vehicles that were backed up after another crash on the highway.

Aguilera-Mederos "manifested an extreme indifference to the value of human life," JeffCo District Attorney Peter Weir said in early May.

On April 25, driving a flatbed vehicle loaded with lumber, Aguilera-Mederos was observed driving his truck at around 85 miles per hour down the eastbound I-70 mountain highway, bypassing several emergency truck pull-off areas, police said. He slammed into stalled traffic near the Colorado Mills Mall, causing a fiery crash that damaged the highway and kept the road closed for more than 24 hours. He told police that the brakes on his truck failed and he feared rolling his semitrailer, so he didn't pull off the highway.

The names of the victims were William Bailey, 67, of Arvada; Doyle Harrison, 61, of Hudson; Miguel Angel Lamas Arellano, 24, of Denver; and Stanley Politano, 69, of Arvada, the Jefferson County Coroner's office said.

Aguilera-Mederos will also stand trial on 24 counts of attempted first-degree assault and six counts of first-degree assault. He is free on a $400,000 bond.

Jean Lotus contributed to this report.

Related:

• 4 Victims In I-70 Fiery Crash Named By JeffCo Coroner
• I-70 Crash Truck Driver Charged With 40 Counts
• 2 Arvada Men Among Victims Of I-70 Fiery Crash