Illegal immigrant arrested after tire falls off trailer, kills man

A man was killed after a tire fell off of a trailer that was hitched to a pick-up truck along Route 28 in Shaler last Friday morning. The victim, a 75-year-old man from Gibsonia, was traveling south along Route 28, passing the truck and trailer when the accident happened. Route 28 was closed for several hours after the accident so that first responders and clean-up crews could clear the scene and police could investigate the accident. The driver of the truck in question is a 23-year-old illegal immigrant. He was arrested, hand-cuffed, and taken to the Shaler Township Police Department. When police pulled the man over, they realized he was in this country illegally when he could not provide a valid driver’s license or insurance on the truck. One police officer told reporters that a wheel on the trailer came loose and bounced over the Jersey barrier onto Route 28 southbound. Police say the victim’s wife was also in the car, but that she was located in the back seat of the car when the accident happened and wasn’t injured. In a written statement, police have said that the driver of the truck “…is the owner of the truck and the trailer…from Kentucky…contracted to do work in…Pennsylvania…” The man “did not have a valid driver’s license and neither the truck nor the trailer [were] insured.” A passenger in the truck, a 24-year-old man from Honduras, told police that the men were dropping off supplies used for roofing at a nearby landfill, then returning to Latrobe, but he did not know the tire had fallen off. He and 63-year-old Mexican man were passengers and are not being charged with any crimes at this time. It was not clear if they are legal citizens. Police told reporters that the driver of the truck is being charged an accident involving a death or serious injury and an accident involving a death without a driver’s license. He will also be charged with insurance and license violations. He was taken to Allegheny County Jail over the weekend to be arraigned. If you have been involved in an accident where someone was seriously injured or killed, you will need an experienced defense attorney, especially if your status in this country is not considered legal. For a free consultation, call Pittsburgh criminal defense attorney Gary Gerson at 412-219-6875 today. Source: WTAE.com, “Tire falls off, hits car, killing 1 on Route 28” 21 November 2014