Man charged with 4 counts of criminal vehicular homicide for deaths of New Brighton couple

A Minneapolis man is scheduled to be in court Wednesday morning for his first appearance after being formally charged for the deaths of a New Brighton couple in an Arden Hills crash last Friday.

According to a criminal complaint, 31-year-old Luis Eduardo Tipantuna Quinchiguano has been charged with four counts of criminal vehicular homicide – two of those charges modified for being under the influence of alcohol.

As previously reported by 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS, the crash, which happened around 8:45 a.m. on westbound I-694 between U.S. 10 as well as Hamline and North Snelling avenues in Arden Hills, caused a section of the highway to close for hours.

An Equinox headed west swerved to the left shoulder and overcorrected, causing it to spin out, crossing through the ditch and hitting a Chevy Malibu that turned onto westbound I-694 from northbound Snelling Avenue.

That crash then caused the Malibu to go sideways into the left lane, where it was hit by a Freightliner Cascadia semi, killing 76-year-old Curtis O’Connor and 74-year-old Karin O’Connor.

RELATED: Friends, neighbors stunned by loss of New Brighton couple killed in crash with suspected drunk driver

A complaint states officers at the scene found open bottles of alcohol in the Equinox, which was being driven by Tipantuna Quinchiguano. He was the only person inside the vehicle.

Court documents go on to say a breath test showed Tipantuna Quinchiguano had a BAC of .218 “on a very weak puff of breath”, and paramedics said he was so intoxicated that he would need hospitalization.

Court records show Tipantuna Quinchiguano had a BAC of .197 after the crash. The state notified him of their intent to seek aggravated sentencing due to that factor on March 19.

The criminal complaint adds witnesses and video from the semi showed Tipantuna Quinchiguano frequently changing lanes and without using his signal before the crash, weaved in and out of traffic and crossed over the fog line of westbound I-694 before the crash.

If convicted, each charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine.