A nine-car accident occurred in Provo Friday night at after suspect Kenneth Hafner drove bast barricades blocking the streets of the Provo Rooftop Concert.
A police officer was struck by the vehicle, receiving minor injuries, after attempting to stop by pounding on the driver’s side window as the vehicle drove.
Hafner allegedly did not stop after being warned by the officer, and began weaving through the crowd in a Chevrolet Suburban still moving at speeds of 15 miles per hour, according to police reports.
Reportedly, Hafner hit a pedestrian while travelling through the crowd, sending the pedestrian to the hospital. A few other concert attendees also received minor injuries while attempting to dodge the approaching car.
After weaving through the crowd, Hafner reportedly turned northbound onto 100 West and drove four blocks until he struck an occupied vehicle.
The crash caused seven other vehicles to impact, three of which were occupied. One person involved in the nine car incident was transported to the hospital Friday night.
Kameron Collins, 21, a freshman at Utah Valley University studying physical therapy, saw the accident scene three hours after the incident. “We saw a bunch of glass everywhere on the ground,” he said. “We saw a car, the backside of it was completely caved in.”
Hafner was taken into custody and was put in jail Saturday morning after being released from the hospital. He was charged with reckless driving, aggravated assault on a police officer and aggravated assault on the pedestrian. The suspect, an Orem resident, also has a warrant for his arrest from the state of California for parole violation.
“We don’t know if it was divine intervention or what, but we’re grateful that this caused only minor injuries rather than someone getting seriously hurt,” said Officer Nick Dupaix from the Provo Police Department.
Police are currently investigating if Hafner was under the influence of alcohol, but Provo Police have yet to find another reason for Hafner’s reckless driving.
“He had several clues of impairment and we determined that he was not safe to drive. We’re pretty confident that he was driving under the influence,” Dupaix said.
