VINTON. LA – A man is facing multiple charges after Louisiana State Police say he entered a crane in the median of Interstate 10 and manipulated it, causing its cables to obstruct the westbound lanes of the highway and leading to multiple crashes.
It happened in Vinton, Louisiana on Saturday. Authorities say they received 911 calls around 5:30 a.m. of multiple vehicles striking the crane.
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Troopers found four vehicles had crashed into the crane’s cables, injuring two people and causing major damage to the crane. The interstate was also closed for a prolonged period of time.
Construction work was not going on at the time and no construction workers were operating the crane.
While processing the scene, detectives recovered a Ram pickup truck key fob inside the crane. A short time later, Troopers located a Ram pickup truck stuck in a field just south of I-10 near the crash site.
The owner of the truck, 37-year-old Matthew Vincent of Vinton, was found nearby and the key fob was confirmed as belonging to his vehicle.
Detectives were able to find out that Vincent had driven his vehicle off the highway where it became stuck. He then abandoned his vehicle and crossed the highway before entering and operating the crane, manipulating the boom over the westbound lanes of I-10, obstructing traffic and causing the crashes.
He was arrested and taken to the Calcasieu Correctional Center where he faces multiple charges.