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WEST VALLEY CITY — An arrest warrant has been issued for a West Valley woman who police say was speeding, under the influence of drugs and driving on a denied license when she hit and killed a man on the shoulder of the freeway earlier this year.
Mahinaalohi Eloi Haaheo Faamoe, 32, was charged Tuesday in 3rd District Court with automobile homicide, a second-degree felony; DUI, a class B misdemeanor; and driving on a denied license, a class C misdemeanor.
On June 7, Leonardo Abraham Angel Mejia, 48, was standing outside his Chevy Suburban, which was stopped on the left shoulder of I-215 near 3100 South, when Faamoe drifted into the shoulder and crashed into the Suburban, pinning Mejia between his vehicle and the concrete barrier, according to charging documents.
"Preliminary findings from the medical examiner noted that there were tire tread impressions on Mejia's upper right torso," the charges state.
Utah Highway Patrol troopers collected GPS data from Faamoe's phone and the Nissan van she was driving and determined she "was traveling at 86 mph two minutes prior to the accident and had been speeding consistently during the drive from her prior location," according to the charges.
Investigators also determined that the vehicle was coasting and drifting for five seconds before hitting Mejia at 60 mph, and "there was no steering input, accelerator input, or braking input prior to the crash," the charges allege.
A toxicology test showed Faamoe had amphetamine and methamphetamine in her system at the time, according to the charging documents. Troopers also said they learned she was driving on a denied license.
"(Faamoe) has since failed to return to work and has failed to cooperate with their employer's insurance company who is also investigating the accident for insurance purposes. (She) has failed to respond to investigators' attempts to make contact to speak with them about the incident and it is unknown where (she) is currently residing," prosecutors noted while requesting a no-bail warrant be issued.
