CORUNNA – Early Saturday morning at approximately 12:35 a.m., troopers from the Indiana State Police Fort Wayne Post responded to a reported vehicle crash on State Road 327 north of County Road 32 in DeKalb County.
Deputies from the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department were first on scene and found an Audi Avant passenger vehicle crashed into a fence and engulfed in flames. They also located an injured man walking near the crash, suffering from what appeared to be burn injuries and head trauma. He was later identified as 19-year-old Leo T. Montoya of Orland, IN. Police believed he was the alleged driver.
Corunna Fire Department arrived and extinguished the vehicle fire, which then revealed a deceased passenger.
As a result of that discovery, the DeKalb County Coroner was also called to the scene.
The passenger has not yet been positively identified. That identification is pending with the Coroner’s investigation. A positive identification is expected in the next day or two. Once that identification is confirmed, that information will be released.
Montoya was tended to at the scene by DeKalb Parkview EMS personnel and then transported to a Fort Wayne area hospital for treatment.
ISP Crash Reconstruction investigators arrived and assumed the overall investigation. The preliminary investigation has revealed that a black 2015 Audi Avant was traveling south on State Road 327 north of County Road 32. It veered off the west edge of the roadway and overcorrected, crossing over into the east ditch, where it then struck a utility pole, a sign, a tree, and a wooden fence. The vehicle came to a final stop and burst into flames.
Police say speed and alcohol are believed to be contributing factors in this crash; however, those facts remain under investigation.
This is an active death investigation. At this time, there is no further information to release.
