36-year-old Danny G. Tiner was arrested at his home on multiple charges related to the January crash, including five counts of manslaughter
A tractor-trailer driver was distracted and using TikTok on his cellphone seconds before causing a Phoenix-area freeway collision that killed five people, authorities said.
The Arizona Department of Public Safety announced that 36-year-old Danny G. Tiner was arrested at his home on Thursday on multiple charges related to the January crash, including five counts of manslaughter.
An investigation determined Tiner was driving 68mph in a 55mph construction zone and actively using the social media app TikTok on his cell right before the deadly crash.
Initially, Tiner told police he had received a message on an electronic work tablet and was acknowledging it.
Tiner said when he looked back up traffic was stopped, and he could not halt his semi trailer in time to avoid a collision.
Five people died in the fiery horror crash after two semi-trucks and two other vehicles collided on Interstate 10 in Phoenix, Arizona in January
It took nearly 30 minutes to put the fire out and close to a dozen police officers remained on scene throughout the morning
On the morning of January 12, state troopers responded to the fiery chain-reaction crash on Interstate 10 in Chandler involving six cars.
Tiner’s tractor-trailer crashed into a passenger car, pushing it into another semitrailer and two other cars.
Most of the victims were trapped inside burning vehicles as the resulting fire from the crash lasted about two hours.
Such was the force with which Tiner rear-ended the two cars in front of him, they became wedged into the back of a second commercial truck.
The second commercial truck was thrust forward and struck two additional cars.
The two passenger vehicles crushed between the semi-trucks ignited and burst into flames, killing the occupants.
The fire spread to Tiner’s commercial truck tractor and trailer, and to the second commercial truck’s box trailer.
The horrific crash shut down the freeway for 11 hours.
The victims were identified as Gilberto Franco, Ryan Gooding, Andrew Standifird, Willis Thompson and Jerardo Vazquez.
This fire was so intense that families were asked to provide dental records in order for identification of their loved ones to take place.
‘I just went into shock. Then I passed out,’ said Tondra Doss, Willis Thompson’s widow to AZFamily, who is mourning the loss of her husband. ‘It’s so hard for me. I swear it’s so hard for me,’ Doss said, speaking about when she learned of his death.
‘Willis was a truly amazing person who was the kindest soul. He had a heart of gold and loved his family dearly,’ a family friend wrote in tribute.
Doss said the family would be filing a wrongful death lawsuit against the driver and trucking company.
Tiner’s tractor-trailer crashed into a passenger car, pushing it into another semitrailer and two other cars setting them all ablaze
Footage from traffic cameras in the area showed a fiery scene with a semi-truck and several passenger cars destroyed
An aerial view from the scene showed a semi-truck engulfed in flames, with the charred remains of vehicles all that remains
Andrew Standifird, 28, has just recovered from addiction issues when his life was cut short in the crash.
The married dad-of-three was a ‘beloved son and husband’. ‘Andrew was a very charismatic, loving, giving, just a very social person,’ Sarah Standifird, Andrew’s mother, said to 12News.
Ryan Gooding was preparing to marry the love of his life, Nikki Johnson, when he was tragically killed in the crash.
‘Every day he would wear his engagement ring, and he would say, “How did I get you?’ every day. He’d say, ‘I can’t believe you want to marry me.’ And then he would say, ‘You’re going to be mine forever,’ Johnson recalled to 12News in a tearful interview.
Gilberto Franco, 28, died in the crash.’Anyone that knew my brother knew what a loving and beautiful soul he was. He loved to make anyone laugh he had a heart of gold for sure,’ his sister, Yesenia Almanza, said to KVOA.
“Pay attention, there’s lives out there. People’s sons, mothers, daughters, children,’ she cried.
Jerardo Vasquez was described as ‘a loving husband and father’ who worked as a landscaper before his death.
‘He was a hard worker who enjoyed his career as a landscaper, beautifying the world around him with the work of his hands and with the love in his heart,’ his daughter Yvonne Rodriguez Vasquez said.
Willis Thompson, left, was killed during January’s accident. Pictured with wife Tondra Doss
Thompson lost his life in the fiery crash. He had a number of children and was married
Ryan Gooding, left, was killed. He is pictured with fiancee Nikki Johnson, right. The couple had been together for ten years and shared a son
Gooding leaves behind a 9-year-old son, Apollo, to whom he was said to be ‘devoted’
Gilberto Franco had just celebrated his 28th birthday when he was killed in the crash
Gilberto Franco, 28, is pictured alongside his mother, in a photo from his obituary
Andrew Standifird was a 28-year-old father of three and described as a beloved son and husband’ at the time of his untimely death
‘Andrew was a very charismatic, loving, giving, just a very social person,’ Sarah Standifird, Andrew’s mother, said
Jerardo Vasquez was described as a loving husband and father who worked as a landscaper
Vasquez was said to be ‘the sole provider of his household. He did all he could to make sure our family was always taken care of,’ he daughter said in tribute to her father
Tiner was notified of an investigation and turned his cell phone over to law enforcement allowing investigators to conduct a forensic examination of his digital devices with assistance from the FBI.
He was also booked on four counts of endangerment and one count of tampering with physical evidence.
Troopers said they long suspected driver distraction as a possible factor in the deadly collision.
‘This road is a straight road. You can see for miles, and the traffic wasn’t that heavy at that time to where you couldn’t see ahead, and it was dark when it happened, so you got brake lights that you should have been able to see for quite some time,’ DPS Capt. Keith Gephert said in January.
It was not immediately known on Friday if Tiner had retained an attorney who could speak for him.
Tiner remains in custody at Maricopa County Jail.
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