Double-Fatal Crash On I-80 Near Gold Run Investigated As Possible Kidnapping, Homicide
PLACER COUNTY (CBS13) - Authorities say a crash that left two people dead on Interstate 80 near Gold Run is being investigated as a possible kidnapping and homicide.
The scene is on the westbound side of Interstate 80 near the Gold Run Road offramp.
The two people killed in the crash are Dayton Holden, 20, of Newcastle. He was the driver. The passenger was Devyn Graham, 23, of Dutch Flat.
Friends say the pair were dating.
According to the California Highway Patrol, the crash happened just after 9 a.m. Two people, the male driver and the female passenger, were killed in the crash, officials with the Placer County Sheriff's Office said.
Investigators are trying to determine whether the truck is connected to an earlier report they received from the community of Alta where someone was forced into a dark-colored truck.
Witnesses say the truck intentionally hit the tree.
Because the crash is being treated as a crime scene, there is a lot of evidence to sort through, say authorities.
"We have the scene up in Alta continued the entire distance to this location. We're documenting that entire scene, from that location to this one -- with emphasis on where this began and where this finished," said Lt. Andrew Scott, a Placer County Sheriff's Department spokesperson. "And we are doing accident reconstruction because it's a traffic collision on the freeway...and all the other circumstances the sheriff's office is investigating."
Westbound lanes that had been closed for the investigation are now open.
The crash scene is expected to be cleared sometime Thursday night.
Drivers should be aware that the number 2 lane of the westbound side of the freeway is closed due to the investigation.