It was a deadly night in Denver, where three men died in accidents early Sunday.
Two fatal motorcycle accidents happened at separate locations, and a 39-year-old man was killed when a vehicle struck him on Colfax Avenue near Logan Street.
During a media briefing Sunday afternoon, Denver police said two drivers had been arrested on vehicular homicide charges and both are believed to have been driving under the influence.
Police have so far not identified any of the victims.
At about 2:15 a.m. Sunday, a 27-year-old biker died when his motorcycle collided with a car near East Second Avenue and Broadway.
April Wilson, 35, who was driving a sedan, struck the motorcyclist. “He struck a concrete trash can … and was ejected from the motorcycle and landed on the ground,” said Denver police Sgt. Michael Farr of the traffic investigations unit. Wilson was arrested on suspicion of vehicular homicide, police said.
The 39-year-old pedestrian was crossing from south to north on Colfax Avenue near Logan Street when he was struck by a sport utility vehicle. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Ryan Winicki, 40, has been arrested on suspicion of vehicular homicide in that accident, police said Sunday. Alcohol and excessive speed are suspected in that crash.
Aurora police arrested Winicki for driving under the influence on Aug. 20, 2009, according to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation.
Wilson has no previous arrests, according to the CBI.
How and when the second motorcycle accident happened is a mystery, said Denver police spokesman Eranda Piyasena. Police are asking anyone who might have seen something or who might have information about the rider of the Harley-Davidson Softail cruiser to call their tip line at 720-337-1000.
At 6:35 a.m. a police officer discovered the motorcycle and the 48-year-old rider’s body off the side of eastbound Interstate 70 at Quebec Street, Piyasena said.
The officer noticed a “glint of chrome” in a grassy depression between the interstate and Quebec and went to investigate, Farr said. “The motorcycle went off the highway and it ended up a single motorcycle fatal,” he said.
The accident happened between midnight and about 6 a.m. Sunday, Farr said.
Police don’t know if the rider ran off the road or was involved in an accident with another motorist.
There have been 22 traffic deaths in Denver since the start of the year, compared with 16 at the same time last year.
