DNA Shows Boy, 13, Didn't Drive Truck That Struck and Killed 7 Members of College Golf Team
The pickup truck driver who caused a crash that killed seven members of a New Mexico college golf team earlier this year was not a 13-year-old boy, the National Transportation and Safety Board announced.
In a preliminary report published Thursday, the NTSB said a DNA test revealed Henrich Siemens, 38, was the driver of a truck that collided with a van carrying members of the University of the Southwest's golf teams in March.
The announcement corrects an earlier NTSB report that suggested the driver of the 2007 Dodge 2500 was Siemens' young son, who died in the West Texas crash along with his father.
"During an on-scene media briefing on March 17, the NTSB stated that the driver of the pickup truck that crashed into the transit van was the 13-year-old male, based on information available at the time," the NTSB said in a statement.
The board also said methamphetamine was found in Siemens' blood.
RELATED: Multiple People Dead After Bus Carrying University of the Southwest's Golf Teams Crashes
"In addition to the DNA test results identifying the father as the pickup truck driver, NTSB post-crash toxicological testing revealed the presence of methamphetamine in the pickup truck driver's blood," the statement said.
USW
Victims aboard the college van were identified as: Coach Tyler James, 26, of Hobbs, New Mexico; Mauricio Sanchez, 19, of Mexico; Travis Garcia, 19, of Pleasanton, Texas; Jackson Zinn, 22, of Westminster, Colorado; Karisa Raines, 21, of Fort Stockton, Texas; Laci Stone, 18, of Nocona, Texas; and Tiago Sousa, 18, of Portugal.
Two other students, Dayton Price, 19, of Mississauga Ontario, Canada, and Hayden Underhill, 20, of Amherstview Ontario, Canada, were taken to local Lubbock hospitals after the crash.
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The team had played in a tournament and was heading back to campus before the collision, Texas Department of Public Safety Sgt. Steven Blanco told reporters in March. The crash occurred at night along a rural highway in Andrews County.
While initial reports said the pickup truck's left front tire blew out before the crash, NTSB investigators said on Thursday that they found no evidence the tire experienced any "catastrophic failure."
"The crash remains under investigation," the NTSB said in a statement, "and analysis of the crash facts, along with conclusions and a determination of probable cause, will come at a later date, when the final report on the investigation is completed."
