RIVER FALLS – A head-on crash in River Falls April 28 resulted in both drivers fleeing the scene – one in his truck and the other on foot.

Officers responded at 9:30 p.m. April 28 to the crash scene at Main Street and Cemetery Road. An abandoned Kia Sorento sat in the intersection. Witnesses told police that the two people in the Kia had fled east on foot, while the truck involved in the crash had kept going north on Main Street. It was missing a wheel and tire.

Soon after the crash, a resident in the 1300 block of Orange Street reported a man parking a truck missing a wheel in front of his house and fleeing on foot south on Orange Street. The man was alone and wearing a “grungy” looking jacket with reflective material.

While in the area of Kennedy and Oak streets, an officer observed a male wearing a jacket with a reflective strip standing in the yard of 400 Kennedy St., speaking with the homeowners. He identified himself as Jacob J. Aasen, 29, River Falls. Officers could smell alcohol emanating from his person. His speech was slow and slurred. The homeowners said they didn't know

the man and he had come to their door looking for help.

Aasen asked officers if he was in Prescott. He admitted to owning the truck down the street, but said someone else had been driving it. He said “they” had gone to a work party in St. Paul Park, Minn., and were on their way home. He refused to give police the name of the alleged driver to “protect his friend.” He admitted to having a loaded Glock 19 9mm handgun in the center console of his truck, along with two additional magazines with 15 rounds each.

After performing field sobriety tests, police transported Aasen to River Falls Area Hospital for a blood test. Aasen’s fiancée later told police she was on the phone with Aasen at the time of the crash and heard it. He was arrested and cited $850 for OWI-third and $350 for hit and run. He was taken to Pierce County Jail.

Back at the crash scene, a witness told police he had been behind the Kia Sorento when Aasen’s truck, heading north on Main, came into their traffic lane on the wrong side of the road. The Kia tried to avoid the crash and the truck hit it about 45 mph in the passenger side, causing it to spin all the way around. The truck kept going north on Main Street.

Two people exited the Kia and took off walking east on Cemetery Road. The Kia was registered to Beisner Ariel Mazatinizaray, 23, Baldwin. Inside the vehicle, police found several empty beer bottles, a baggie of cocaine, marijuana and a glass pipe.

At 12:22 p.m. May 1, a Baldwin businessowner called police and said Mazatinizaray wanted to cooperate in giving information about the crash. He admitted to driving the Kia without insurance and said he had a sore back from the crash. He said his passenger was his roommate, Jhonder Puglla.

Baldwin police arrested Mazatinizaray at his home and took him to St. Croix County Jail, where a River Falls officer interviewed him. He told the officer he had brought food to his brother in River Falls. He said he fled the scene because of an outstanding St. Croix County warrant and not having a driver’s license. He was afraid he’d be sent home to his native country if he got into more trouble. He denied owning the cocaine or drinking since an OWI-second arrest in February.