Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Teen driver in restaurant crash in custody on DUI charges

10 seriously hurt when car plows into Las Vegas eatery

Egg and I Accident

Steve Marcus

Firefighters pack up their gear after making rescues at the Egg and I restaurant on West Sahara Avenue Monday April 1, 2013. As many as 10 people were injured when a Lexus sedan left the roadway and crashed into the restaurant.

Updated Tuesday, April 2, 2013 | 12:05 a.m.

Car Crashes into Egg and I

A woman is loaded into an ambulance outside the Egg and I restaurant on West Sahara Avenue Monday April 1, 2013. As many as 10 people were injured when a Lexus sedan left the roadway and crashed into the restaurant. Launch slideshow »

The Egg & I

A teen driver of a car that plowed into the Egg & I restaurant Monday afternoon, injuring 10 people, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of drugs, authorities said.

Gage Lindsey, 18, the driver of the 1993 Lexus LS400, was booked into the Clark County Detention Center on counts of DUI-drugs resulting in substantial bodily harm, felony reckless driving and felony hit and run, according to a news released issued Monday night by Metro Police.

The four-door, Lexus sedan went airborne before it landed on an outdoor dining patio and smashed through a window of the restaurant, which was packed with lunchtime diners, officials said.

Two men were seen handcuffed on the sidewalk after the crash. One of the men was “sitting there smiling and laughing like nothing happened,” said Jean Guillaume, who was walking past the restaurant when the car passed within 10 feet of him.

Ten people with serious but not life-threatening injuries were taken to University Medical Center and Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center, Las Vegas Fire & Rescue spokesman Tim Szymanski said.

The crash was reported about 12:37 p.m. at 4533 W. Sahara Ave., between Arville Street and Decatur Boulevard.

A preliminary investigation indicates the Lexus sedan, driven by Lindsey, was heading west on Sahara Avenue when it entered a left turn lane and hit a median. The vehicle traveled over the median, entering the eastbound lanes of traffic, where it was struck by a 2010 Mitsubishi Galant and a 2006 Ford F-150 pickup truck, police said.

After the collisions, the Lexus struck a south curb and a wall around the patio before smashing into the outdoor dining area and building, police said.

Lindsey and his passenger, 21-year-old David Roldan, hopped out of the car and attempted to flee, but witnesses apprehended them, police said. Roldan was not arrested.

The driver of the Mitsubishi Galant suffered minor injuries, police said. The driver of the Ford F-150 was unharmed.

Deon Para, who was outside eating at a T.G.I. Friday’s restaurant across the street, said he heard the crash and ran over to see if he could help. People were trying to lift the car off of victims, but it was too heavy, he said.

He said he tried to comfort a boy whose grandmother had been knocked unconscious. The boy had blood on him, but did not seem to have any severe injuries, he said.

Police closed West Sahara between Decatur and Arville. Both sides of Sahara, east and west, were closed until 7 p.m. while Metro Police investigated, Szymanski said.

Sarah Gehringer, general manager of the Egg & I, said the restaurant was packed for lunch at the time of the crash. She said the business would remain closed for at least a couple of days.

“Our thoughts and prayers go out to everyone who was involved in this," Gehringer said.

Lindsey, who suffered minor injuries, remains in the detention center without bail, according to jail records.

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