A 30-year-old Tucson man remains hospitalized for injuries sustained Wednesday when he crashed a stolen pickup at the U.S. Border Patrol checkpoint on State Route 90 north of Sierra Vista. At least two other motorists were also injured in the incident which involved a police chase at sustained speeds of 100 mph.
Luciano Michael Kristoff has still not been booked into the Cochise County jail as of Sunday morning. He was initially listed as being admitted to a Tucson trauma hospital in critical condition but no update has been issued by the Arizona Department of Public Safety (DPS) since March 9.
Kristoff is accused of assaulting an 86-year-old man in the head and had his Ford truck stolen outside a Sierra Vista business around 9 a.m. March 8. Fortunately, the truck’s owner was not seriously injured, according to a Sierra Vista police spokesman.
Two days prior, Kristoff had been booked into the Cochise County jail on two drug charges. He had an initial court appearance the next morning at which time he was ordered released from custody pending trial.
However, Kristoff’s vehicle was still under impound in connection with the drug charges. It appears the Ford truck was targeted at random on March 8 as a way for Kristoff to get back to town. A “be on the lookout” bulletin was issued to local law enforcement agencies with a description of the stolen truck.
A short time later a DPS trooper located the Ford heading northbound on SR90, the main road between Sierra Vista and Interstate 10, but Kristoff continued traveling up to 100 mph while refusing to comply with efforts by the trooper to execute a traffic stop . Speed limits approaching the checkpoint quickly drop from 65 mph to 25 mph but Kristoff did not slow down, according to witnesses.
Four vehicles in line to go through the USBP checkpoint on SR90 were damaged when Kristoff lost control of the Ford while trying to drive around barricades. Witnesses reported the truck flipped more than once before coming to rest upside down, leaving a trail of wreckage in its path.
Two motorists were treated for non-threatening injuries.
Multiple law enforcement sources told Arizona Daily Independent the incident did not appear connected with the ongoing problem in the area of human and drug smuggling.
Public records show Kristoff has a felony conviction out of Pima County in a 2013 drug case.