a day ago
New video shows moments before deadly Beaver Falls crash
A new video shows the moments before a deadly two-vehicle crash in Beaver Falls, Beaver County, over the weekend.
Two people were killed and two others were injured in the crash along Seventh Avenue on Sunday afternoon. Two vehicles and a pedestrian were involved in the crash.
KDKA obtained security camera video on Wednesday that shows how fast the driver, Israel Tun Cooch, was going in his pickup truck before the collision. The video shows him speeding down Seventh Avenue moments before the crash. Police in Beaver Falls said Cooch was drunk, speeding and ran a red light.
"I pulled up to my house and I get out and I hear a screech and then I hear a big boom and I hear screaming," said Toni Hahn, hostess at Athens Family Restaurant.
Officials said 23-year-old Sheylee Young-Davis and 25-year-old Matthew Lance Jr. were killed in the crash. The force of the collision threw their vehicle on top of Carrie Koch, pinning her underdeath it.
Koch had just finished her shift as a waitress at Athens Family Restaurant on Seventh Avenue. Her boss, Marina Brown, raced to the scene before Koch was flown to the hospital.
"She was pinned under the vehicle," Brown said. "Everyone said we do not know how she survived. She was lying there, calm. I approached her and said, 'What can I do for you?' She said, 'No, I'm good, just get the sun out of my eyes.'"
Tun Cooch was denied bailed. He faces 20 charges, including 13 felonies. Court records show his blood alcohol content was at least twice the legal limit, which is 0.08.
Police in Beaver Falls said he also did not have a license, and that was the case when Cranberry Township police officers arrested him in November 2021.
Beaver County District Attorney Nate Bible confirmed to KDKA that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is lodging a detainer on Tun Cooch.
"The more I'm hearing about him, the more disgusted I become," Brown said. "I saw him that day. He was probably standing 5 feet away her."
Koch, a 48-year-old grandmother and mother of three, is recovering in the hospital after surgery. She fractured her hips and legs.
"It's heartbreaking, but now just praying she is going to be able to walk," Hahn said. "That's all I want."
An online fundraiser for Koch has more than $20,000 as of Wednesday night. There is also a donation jar at Athens Family Restaurant
"All for Carrie," Brown said. "The tears, the well wishes, just everyone's concerned."
