DENVER — A man who ran a red light in a stolen car and smashed into another vehicle at a busy Denver intersection last summer, killing two men, has been sentenced to 72 years in prison, according to the 18th Judicial District Attorney's Office.
Denver District Court Judge John Madden handed down the sentence for Jeffrey Sloan, 37, of Glendale on Oct. 9.
The June 9, 2019 crash killed Yasir Hasan, 33, and passenger Mark Karla, 45. In August, a jury found Sloan guilty of all charges in the case, including vehicular homicide.
“This is beyond question a horrific tragedy … that never should have happened,” Judge Madden said during sentencing. “The victims were doing everything that was right and did nothing wrong. No sentence can reflect the magnitude of the lives lost and their value to their families and community.”
The three-car crash happened just after 1 a.m. at East Colfax Avenue and Colorado Boulevard. Sloan was driving a stolen silver Jeep Liberty westbound along Colfax Avenue at a high rate of speed while approaching Colorado Boulevard where there was a red light, according to a probable cause statement by the Denver Police Department (DPD).
Sloan failed to stop at the red light and struck a silver Hyundai Insight traveling southbound on Colorado Boulevard. The Hyundai then crashed into a Dodge Dakota that was stopped at the red light, the statement says.
Hasan, who was driving the Hyundai, died at the scene of the crash. His passenger, Karla, was brought to the hospital where he later died.
Witnesses told police that the Sloan fled the scene without offering aid or contacting police. Another witness told police she saw a man walking with a limp from the scene, according to the statement.
Video captured at the scene indicated the Jeep was traveling about 80 mph just prior to the collision, the statement says.
A short time after the wreck, a search warrant was issued for the suspect vehicle. While executing the warrant, police located a leather jacket with a wallet that contained a Colorado ID for Sloan. It was later learned, according to the statement, that the vehicle Sloan was allegedly driving had been reported stolen the day before the wreck.
Sloan was arrested on June 10, 2019 on unrelated warrants, police said.
“The effort to get out of trouble makes the situation far worse," Judge Madden told Sloan. "Your efforts to avoid contact with police led to the deaths of two perfectly innocent individuals. It is distressing to have you come to Colorado and immediately begin picking up new criminal conduct.”
Sloan will serve his 72 year sentence in the Colorado Department of Corrections.
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