DES MOINES, Iowa — The Iowa State Patrol arrested the Bondurant man Tuesday involved in the Dec. 29 high-speed wreck near the east mix of U.S. Interstate 80 that killed two.
Travis Gonzales, 37, of Bondurant was charged with two counts of homocide by vehicle-OWI, two counts of homicide by vehicle-reckless driving and first-offense OWI.
Gonzales was doing 126 mph in a 65 mph zone when his westbound vehicle rear-ended a vehicle containing two occupants near the 138 mile marker of U.S. Interstate 80, an ISP statement said.
After impact, both vehicles lost control and entered the north ditch of the interstate.
Austin Paul Gainus, 22, of Adel and Joshua Lamont Cox, 24, of Prairie City died as a result of the collision. Gonzales was not injured.
Gonzales “showed several signs of impairment and made several incriminating statements, causing troopers to serve a search warrant on the subject for blood,” according to the ISP statement.
The blood was analyzed at the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation Crime Lab, and a blood alcohol content (BAC) of .219 was returned. The legal limit for BAC in Iowa is .08.
Gonzales was booked in the Polk County Jail.
*A criminal charge is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
