Danny Tiner appears inset against an image showing the aftermath of the fiery auto crash that took several lives in Arizona in January 2023. (Arizona Department of Public Safety)
A six-vehicle pileup on an Arizona highway in January killed five people. Now, police say the person responsible, a semi-truck driver, was "actively using" TikTok just before the fiery crash occurred.
Danny Glen Tiner, 36, stands accused of 10 felonies over the crash, including five counts of manslaughter, four counts of endangerment, and one count of tampering with physical evidence.
He was arrested at his residence by state troopers and detectives on Thursday, according to a press release issued by the Arizona Department of Public Safety.
The deadly incident unfolded over an hour before daybreak on Jan. 12 on eastbound Interstate 10 near the Chandler Boulevard off-ramp in the city of the same name.
"State troopers determined a man was driving a commercial truck-tractor hauling an open-top box trailer loaded with garbage," the AZDPS wrote in an initial press release at the time. "The commercial driver failed to stop for congested traffic, rear-ended two passenger vehicles, and wedged them into the back of a second commercial truck. The second commercial truck was thrust forward and struck two additional cars."
Tinor suffered minor injuries in the crash, police said. The dead were in the two passenger vehicles. They were Ryan Gooding, Andrew Standifird, Jerardo Vazquez, Willis Thompson, and Gilberto Franco.
"The two passenger vehicles crushed between the semi-trucks ignited and burst into flames," the AZDPS said. "The fire spread to the at-fault commercial truck tractor and trailer and to the second commercial truck's box trailer."
At the time of the incident, Tiner allegedly told police that he received a work-related message on a tablet specifically designated for work, "acknowledged the message," and when he looked up, saw a traffic jam but could not stop in time.
That excuse never jibed with state police.
"This road is a straight road," DPS Capt. Keith Gephert said in January, in comments reported by Phoenix-based independent TV station KTVK. "You can see for miles, and the traffic wasn't that heavy at that time to where you couldn't see ahead, and it was dark when it happened, so you got brake lights that you should have been able to see for quite some time."
Immediately after the crash, the AZDPS added, "troopers suspected driver distraction as a possible factor."
Those suspicions appear to have been borne out.
According to law enforcement, their months-long investigation determined that Tiner was driving 68 mph in a 55-mph construction zone when he was driving distracted due to his use of TikTok.
"Tiner was notified of an investigation and turned his cellphone over to law enforcement," the AZDPS said Thursday. "Investigators conducted a forensic examination of Tiner's cellphone with assistance from the FBI."
He was booked into the Maricopa County Jail. He was granted $300,000 bond during a remote hearing on Friday.
The county court system does not yet have Tiner's case on its public docket. He is slated to appear in court again on July 7.
