Othello man booked on three counts of vehicular homicide

OTHELLO — An Othello man has been booked on suspicion of three counts of vehicular homicide following a crash that killed three teen girls Sunday afternoon near Othello. One of the charges will include a domestic violence enhancement, according to Adams County Sheriff Dale Wagner.  

Presiliano Perez-Pineda, 19, of Othello was arrested late Sunday night after fleeing the scene of the collision on West Bench Road.  

“There is a domestic violence element to it,” Wagner told the Columbia Basin Herald in an interview.  

“One of those charges will have a domestic violence enhancement due to his previous relationship with one of the victims,” Wagner said in an updated ACSO release.  

The three victims were ejected from the vehicle and were found dead at the scene, the release said. The vehicle came to rest in an irrigation canal. 

In the updated release, Wagner said evidence collected at the scene, as well as video evidence, showed a second vehicle was involved. 

“Investigators identified a second vehicle, a white Mercedes sedan, as being directly involved by striking the victim vehicle at high rates of speed. Further investigation led to statements and evidence indicating the driver of that vehicle fled the scene,” Wagner said in an updated press release.  

“He did not stick around,” Wagner said.  

The incident occurred at about 2 p.m. Sunday in the 2000 block of West Bench Road about one mile south of Othello, according to an ACSO release. The victims were all teenagers, the ACSO release said, and as a result their names are not being released. 

Othello School District Superintendent Pete Perez said in a statement released Monday; the three girls were Othello High School students. 

“We have been in contact with the families and will continue to support them during this incredibly difficult time,” Perez said.  

The road was closed for about seven hours. 

Wagner said the case is still under investigation.