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Crime & Safety

Honda Involved in Hit-and-Run Found in Rohnert Park

The car that injured cyclist Michael Torckler abandoned after the accident.

 

By Bay City News Service

 

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A stolen Honda Accord that was involved in a hit-and-run accident that injured a professional bicycle racer in Sonoma County last month was found in Rohnert Park on Monday, a California Highway Patrol officer said this afternoon.

Arthur Yu, 36, of Rohnert Park, is facing hit-and-run charges for a collision that seriously injured Michael Torckler, 25, of New Zealand, as he rode on Pine Flat Road near Healdsburg on June 29, CHP Officer Jon Sloat said.

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A passenger in Yu's Honda stayed at the scene but Yu drove away, Sloat said. He was arrested the next day.

A citizen called the Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety on Monday to report that a Honda had been abandoned for three weeks near Hudis Street and Hillview Way in Rohnert Park, Sloat said.

Rohnert Park police checked the car's license plate and determined that it was the vehicle involved in the hit-and-run incident, Sloat said.

The CHP impounded the Honda for evidence, Sloat said. Yu's father had reported the Honda stolen a week before the collision, Sloat said.

CHP investigators said Yu was driving north on Pine Flat Road northeast of Healdsburg at 15 to 20 mph when the collision occurred at about 12:30 p.m. on June 29. 

Yu allegedly cut the corner on a right curve in the road and drove into the path of Torckler's Pinarello bicycle, according to the CHP.

Torckler was thrown from his bike and hit the Honda's windshield, then fell to the pavement, CHP officials said.

Torckler, who races for the Santa Rosa-based Bissell Pro Cycling team, suffered wounds to his face.

Yu has pleaded not guilty to felony reckless driving, hit-and-run, auto theft, possession of a stolen vehicle and misdemeanor driving on a suspended license. His next court appearance is Thursday morning.

 

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