An 18-year-old man was in police custody Friday after he allegedly drove drunk, crashed and left his 15-year-old passenger in the vehicle to die near Delta in Millard County.
In the early morning hours, deputies from the Millard County Sheriff’s Office responded to reports of the young man — later identified as George Jakob Schafer — knocking on doors in the area of Deseret, trying to get a ride, a news release from the sheriff’s office says.
Schafer told one person he’d been in a crash, and deputies found a vehicle that had rolled and had a deceased 15-year-old girl inside, the release says.
Schafer was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, automobile homicide, underage consumption of alcohol and leaving the scene of an accident. Police said he was being booked into the Millard County jail on Friday morning.
Law enforcement officers from the sheriff’s office and the Utah Highway Patrol are investigating the crash, the release said.
Police have not yet released the 15-year-old’s identity, pending notification to her family.
“Our condolences go out to the family for their loss,” the release said.
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