LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — The speedometer in a car driven by a man accused of DUI in a deadly Christmas morning crash was frozen at 95 mph following the collision, and he may have been driving as fast as 105 mph, according to his arrest report.
Giraldo Salas-Chacon, 20, is facing charges of DUI resulting in death and reckless driving resulting in death or substantial bodily injury for the crash which occured on Maryland Parkway, south of Sahara Avenue.
The report said witnesses called 911 to report the crash and said a man was ejected and suffered “unsurvivable injuries.” The man killed was later identified by the Clark County Coroner’s office as Gonzalo Perez-Banuelos Sr. In all, six people were in the Chevrolet Equinox when it was struck and rolled over onto its roof.
Police documents said Salas-Chacon was the only person in the Dodge Journey when it crashed into the Equinox. Officers noted that Salas-Chacon smelled of alcohol, had slurred speech, bloodshot watery eyes and refused to do the Standardized Field Sobriety Tests.
An RTC bus driver who witnessed the crash told police the Dodge passed her on the left side, “traveling very, very fast.” The surveillance camera on the bus captured video of the crash and police who reconstructed the crash and examined the Dodge said “the speedometer was frozen at approximately 95 mph” but he could have being driving as fast at 105 mph, documents said. The posted speed limit in that area is 30 mph.
The police investigation showed that Salas-Chacon’s vehicle was speeding southbound on Maryland Parkway when it struck the Equinox as it was making a right turn from Sahara onto southbound Maryland.
Two blood draws were done on Salas-Chacon. Those results have not been released at this time.
Salas-Chacon, who remains in custody at the Clark County Detention Center, is scheduled to appear in court on Jan. 6, 2025.
