Authorities said a man was allegedly watching TikTok while driving his truck just before the fatal incident that left five people dead.
A truck Crashed with Several Vehicles
On Jan. 12 at around 6:15 in the morning, a commercial truck collided with five vehicles on Interstate 10 eastbound close to the Chandler Boulevard offramp. The Arizona Department of Public Safety reported that the open-op trailer was loaded with garbage and that the driver failed to stop for backed-up traffic since he was getting fun with TikTok while driving, rear-ended two passenger vehicles, and wedged them into the back of a second commercial truck, based on news report of True Crime Daily.
Two further cars were struck in front of the second commercial truck. The two commercial vehicles caught fire when the cars wedged in the gap between the two trucks caught fire. The negligent driver who was watching TikTok while driving sustained minor wounds while five people perished.
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According to Police Investigation
Gilberto Franco, Ryan Gooding, Andrew Standifird, Willis Thompson, and Jerardo Vazquez were the five victims, according to AZFamily.com. The driver named Danny Tiner, allegedly told investigators that he received a message on his work tablet at the time and “acknowledged the message,” but that by the time he looked up, traffic had stopped, and “he could not stop his vehicle in time to avoid a collision,” according to the Arizona Department of Public Safety.
According to reports, Arizona State Troopers suspected that distracted driving contributed to the collision from the beginning of the inquiry. The Arizona Department of Public Safety claims that Tiner was using the TikTok application at the time of the collision. The driver was suspected to be watching TikTok while driving the truck. He gave the police his phone, which they examined forensically.
On Thursday, June 29, Tiner was taken into custody at his residence on five counts of manslaughter, four counts of endangering others, and one case of tampering with tangible evidence.
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