33-year-old driver sentenced for Arden Hills crash that killed 2
A 33-year-old man has been sentenced for causing a crash in Arden Hills, Minnesota, in 2024 that killed two people in their 70s.
Court records show Eduardo Tipantuna Quinchiguano was sentenced to six years and 10 months by a judge on Monday, with credit for one year and 10 months served. At least two-thirds of that sentence will be spent in prison. He pleaded guilty to two counts of criminal vehicular homicide in September.
The crash happened on westbound Interstate 694 near Snelling Avenue during the morning of Feb. 16, 2024. According to the criminal complaint, Quinchiguano was driving a Chevrolet Equinox when he crashed into the victims' Chevrolet Malibu, pushing it into a separate lane in front of a semitruck.
According to court documents, the semitruck then collided with the Malibu. Curtis O'Connor, 76, and Karin O'Connor, 74, who were both in the sedan, died at the scene.
A preliminary breath test registered Quinchiguano's blood alcohol content at .218, which is nearly three times the legal limit, the complaint said.
"A paramedic expressed that [he] was so intoxicated that he would need to be hospitalized," according to court documents.
Quinchiguano was originally charged with four counts of criminal vehicular homicide, though the prosecution in September moved to dismiss two of the counts.