At approximately 3:42pm on December 4, 2017, Washington State Patrol (WSP) Detective Sergeant Moate was in the backup EB I-90 waiting to exit to SR 18. Detective Sergeant Moate observed a white van in her rear view mirror spinning and coming to rest in lanes two and three with heavy front end damage. Another vehicle was observed in the ditch with severe rear end damage. Two other vehicles were also involved in this collision with the occupants only sustaining minor injuries.
Detective Sergeant Moate backed up to secure the scene and check for injuries. The driver of the vehicle in the ditch was conscious but had sustained serious injuries. The driver of the white van was subsequently placed under arrest for Vehicular Assault due to the nature of the injuries and signs of impairment. This driver was identified as Tyler O. Riley, 27, residing in North Bend .
According to witnesses, the white van was driving erratically prior to the collision and failed to observe that traffic was coming to a stop and struck the rear end of the first vehicle at a high rate of speed which also caused two other vehicles to be struck.
