Suspect Charged With Murder In Fremont Motorcycle Crash That Killed Marine
FREMONT (CBS SF) -- An Emeryville man was charged with murder Thursday for a crash in Fremont early Tuesday morning that killed 23-year-old Andrew Silva of Union City, a U.S. Marine who had recently returned from a tour of duty in Afghanistan.
Alexander Yohn, 23, was arraigned on the murder charge in Alameda County Superior Court in Fremont Thursday afternoon as well as on charges of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and leaving the scene of an accident.
According to Fremont police, Silva was riding on a motorcycle when Yohn, who was driving a Mini Cooper, struck him at the intersection of Fremont Boulevard and Decoto Road at about 1:15 a.m. Tuesday.
Police said officer began pursuing Yohn after an employee at a Taco Bell drive-thru restaurant in the 37000 block of Fremont Boulevard reported that Yohn was belligerent and possibly under the influence of alcohol.
Yohn was driving at a high rate of speed and refused to stop, police said.
After hitting Silva, Yohn allegedly crashed into a utility pole and fence and then fled but officers were able to catch and arrest him, according to police.
Fremont police Officer Alan Zambonin said in a probable cause statement that Yohn admitted after he was arrested that he had consumed at least five Jameson whiskey drinks before driving the Mini Cooper and that he had been at two bars in Fremont prior to the accident.
Yohn also admitted that after he left the second bar he had no recollection of what happened until he awoke at a hospital, according to Zambonin.
In addition, Yohn said he is a recovering heroin addict and an alcoholic and that he takes a prescription drug every day to control his heroin addiction, Zambonin said.
The officer said Yohn "admitted that he should not be drinking an alcoholic beverage while taking the prescription drug due to the side effect of the interaction of both drugs.
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