Hurricane driver arrested after allegedly leaving the scene of crash to ditch evidence

A silver Toyota truck towed from the scene of a crash by the Utah Department of Transportation’s incident response team on state Route 9, Jan. 20, 2023 | Photo by Haven Scott, St. George News

ST. GEORGE — A Hurricane man was arrested for multiple offenses following a traffic crash on Friday at the intersection of State Route 9 and 6300 West/Telegraph Street. After reports that one of the drivers in the crash had fled the scene on foot, officers discovered a pipe in a nearby trash can after arresting the suspect.

On Friday, Tyson James Aucoin, 32, was booked into the Purgatory Correctional Facility on charges of following too closely, leaving the scene of an accident, driving on a denied license, possession of drug paraphernalia and driving under the influence, the latter being his second in less than 10 years which enhances the felony charge.

Shortly after 3 p.m., emergency dispatch reported an incident involving a silver Toyota truck traveling eastbound on SR-9 rear-ending a red Chevrolet Silverado. Officers dispatched to the scene were advised that a man had fled to a nearby gas station after the crash, according to the probable cause statement filed in the Fifth District Court in St. George.

Utah Highway Patrol Trooper Mike Alexander said in a telephone interview with St. George News that Aucoin’s vehicle took the brunt of the damage from the collision. The driver and passenger of the vehicle that was hit from behind were unharmed and refused medical attention. 

Despite the high rate of speed involved, the victims drove away from the crash without needing to be towed, Alexander said. Aucoin suffered minor injuries due to airbag deployment and was transported to jail after receiving medical attention.

The Toyota truck driven by Aucoin was totaled, leaving the Utah Department of Transportation incident response team scrambling to clear the scene just before the weekend rush hour. Eastbound traffic on SR-9 was minimized to one lane resulting in traffic backed up to the Interstate 15 interchange.

The driver and passenger of the red Chevrolet Silverado were allegedly hit from behind, on Friday, Jan. 20, 2023. They were not injured and drove their vehicle from the scene | Photo by Haven Scott, St. George News

According to the statement filed in support of arrest, emergency dispatchers notified officers responding to the crash that one of the drivers, later identified as Aucoin, had run away to a nearby gas station. An off-duty trooper with the Utah Highway Patrol arrived at the crash first and ordered Aucoin to return to the scene.

Upon searching the garbage cans at the station, police said they found drug paraphernalia.

“The male attempted to discard drug paraphernalia in the gas station garbage,” the arresting Utah Highway Patrol trooper wrote. “The drug paraphernalia was recovered and was a used bong.”

Drivers exiting Interstate 15 onto state Route 9 were faced with long delays as the result of an accident on Friday, Jan. 20, 2023 | Photo by Haven Scott, St. George News

Utah court records show that Aucoin’s criminal history includes more than three dozen cases in several counties. The various charges, some of which resulted in convictions and others of which were dismissed, include theft, burglary and drug possession, along with various traffic offenses, including speeding, following too closely and driving without a valid license.

Aucoin currently has a pending case in Sevier County, where he’s accused of unlawful use of a motor vehicle on private property, a class C misdemeanor. Aucoin also had two speeding cases in Washington County in 2022, one of which resulted in a bail forfeiture and the other a plea in abeyance.

This report is based on statements from court documents and law enforcement officials and may not contain the full scope of findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.

St. George News reporter Jeff Richards contributed to this story.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2023, all rights reserved.

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