A La Plata County man has turned himself in on an arrest warrant in the investigation of the road death of professional cyclist Benjamin Sonntag.
Cordell Schneider, 19, is expected to be charged this week with felony vehicular homicide in the collision March 4 in rural southwest La Plata County, said 6th Judicial District Attorney Christian Champagne..
“We want the community to know we’ve been taking this very seriously from the start,” Champagne said. “Now, we will let the criminal process play out and hope to bring justice to the situation.”
Schneider was driving a 1991 Ford Ranger pickup truck south on County Road 105 shortly after noon when he collided with 39-year-old Sonntag of Durango, according to a “preview” “crash report.
The report estimated Schneider was southbound 65 mph in a 35 mph zone on the dirt road west of Marvel. Schneider lost control of the truck and “began to yaw in a clockwise rotation.”
The Colorado State Patrol estimated Sonntag was riding his Specialized S-Works Tarmac north at 20 mph. He apparently swerved to avoid Schneider, then veered back into the path of the truck and collided with Schneider about 1½ feet from the west edge of the road.
Sonntag was thrown about 75 feet before hitting the ground in the middle of the road. He then tumbled 52 feet and stopped on the east side of the road, the crash report said. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Schneider continued south an estimated 225 feet, went down an embankment, hit a tree and stopped on his side in Cherry Creek. He was treated and released from Mercy Regional Medical Center with minor injuries. Neither drugs nor alcohol were suspected.
Champagne said the District Attorney’s Office worked with the Colorado State Patrol during the investigation. He said the coronavirus pandemic did slow the process.
“There were some investigative materials we were working to acquire,” he said. “What delayed us with forming charges, a lot of it has to do with accident reconstruction information and the evidence that goes into that type of project. ... Working with some outside agencies, some information was slow to arrive, mainly due to COVID-19. That delayed the charges.”
Schneider was expected to be booked into La Plata County Jail and post bail to be released.
Sonntag was a German national who had resided in Durango since joining the Fort Lewis College cycling team in 2007. About 150 people, including family from Germany, attended a memorial service for Sonntag March 14 at LaPlata County Fairgrounds.
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