Motorcyclists killed in wrong-way crash in March, police say

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Prosecutors have dropped DUI charges against a truck driver accused of colliding with three motorcyclists, killing them outside of Las Vegas.

A criminal complaint the 8 News Now Investigators obtained Wednesday shows Claude Rafiki, 29, faces three charges of reckless driving resulting in death for the March 23 crash on State Route 163 near Laughlin.

A Laughlin Justice Court official declined to release Rafiki’s arrest report, citing Nevada State Police as the rightful agency to do so. Unlike Las Vegas Metro police, Nevada State Police has a policy of not releasing arrest reports amid pending criminal proceedings.

The crash killed Owen Hart, 22; Athena Faye Taylor, 21, and Jeremy Gebo, 44, all of Saint George, Utah, the coroner’s office said. Rafiki’s initial court appearance was delayed several days as the courts were working to find Rafiki a translator, records indicated. Rafiki speaks Kinyarwanda, a Central African language.

Rafiki’s charges indicate police believe he was driving on the wrong side of State Route 163 at the time of the crash. Police have never released any information about why they believed Rafiki was impaired.

Rafiki remained at the Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas on Wednesday where he was held on $500,000 bail.

The Clark County District Attorney’s Office did not respond to a request about why the DUI charges were denied.