A commercial truck driver from Brockton is being held on $700,000 bail after a fiery crash with a tractor trailer in Pennsylvania killed a state trooper and sent the other driver to the hospital.
Multiple media reports indicate that Michael Bon, 33, of Brockton, was arraigned on several charges Thursday morning — including involuntary manslaughter, homicide by vehicle, aggravated assault by vehicle, and reckless driving, among other charges.
The fiery crash happened on I-81 in Schuylkill County and resulted in the death of 44-year-old State Trooper Michael Pahira, according to the Pottsville Republican Herald.
The Herald reports Pahira was conducting a routine commercial inspection on another tractor trailer at 7 a.m. Wednesday when the crash occurred. Authorities say both the tractor trailer and Pahira’s police vehicle were pulled over in the right-hand shoulder of the highway.
“A second CMV (commercial motor vehicle) was also traveling southbound on I-81 and approached the location. The second CMV left the roadway and struck the patrol unit’s side view mirror. It then impacted the rear of the CMV, which was being inspected, pushing it further off the roadway. The second CMV then struck Trooper Pahira. Both CMVs caught on fire after impact,” Pennsylvania State Police said in a press release.
Law enforcement tells the newspaper Pahira had been directly speaking with the other driver, Walter Alfredo Reinoso, of New York, when Bon’s tractor trailer suddenly veered into the right-hand shoulder and struck them.
“According to the affidavit, nearby construction workers observed smoke and headed towards the scene. They managed to pull Pahira out from beneath the vehicle and drag him about 30 yards away from the wreckage,” the Herald reported. “Pahira never regained consciousness and was pronounced dead later Wednesday morning at Lehigh Valley Hospital–Schuylkill in Pottsville. Bon was also transported to the hospital for undisclosed injuries.”
Court records go on to indicate that Pahira was pinned between the front bumper of Bon’s tractor trailer and the side cab of the other.
The other driver, Reinoso, told media outlets that he briefly lost consciousness from the impact. When he regained consciousness, Reinoso says he climbed out of his truck cab to find the group of construction workers attempting to pull Pahira from the wreckage. Reinoso provided authorities with dash camera footage of the crash.
Gov. Josh Shapiro held a press conference, mourning the loss of Pahira, who was pronounced dead at 11:45 a.m. at a nearby hospital.
“I ask the entire Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to pray for the Pahira family. To pray for his friends and neighbors. To pray for Troop L, where Mike served, and, of course, pray for the entire Pennsylvania State Police community. Today is a horrible reminder of the service and the sacrifice that they devote to this Commonwealth every single day,” Shapiro said. “As the governor of this Commonwealth, I am profoundly grateful, and I sleep better at night knowing the Pennsylvania State Police does this work in communities across our Commonwealth.”
Pahira had served with Pennsylvania State Police for over 20 years and was called a “devoted” uncle, brother and son by family members.
Bon was being held in Schuylkill County Prison after failing to post his $700,000 bail. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for July 16.