A 35-year-old man is dead after a light-colored SUV struck him while he was sitting in the northbound lane of Highway 139 south of Loma early Monday morning, then dragged his body roughly 130 feet before fleeing the scene. Colorado State Patrol has since announced the arrest of two men in Vernal, Utah, in connection with the crash, which happened around 2:12 a.m.
According to Denver7, 48-year-old Aaron MacKinnon was arrested and charged with felony leaving the scene of a crash involving a death, while 44-year-old Rusty Vogt was arrested and charged with felony accessory. The Colorado State Patrol Vehicular Crime Unit is leading the investigation under case number VC260298, according to JunctionNow. Both men are being extradited to Mesa County to face the charges, the station's report notes.
The victim was initially taken to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries but later died. Authorities have not released his name; per the same account, coroners typically withhold identification until next-of-kin notifications are complete, and the Mesa County Coroner's Office holds sole responsibility for that release once formal identification is finalized, according to SECO News.
How Investigators Tracked the Suspects to Utah
The Vernal Police Department in Utah located and arrested both suspects acting on leads supplied by Colorado law enforcement, the report from JunctionNow states. Vernal sits roughly 110 miles northwest of Loma across state lines, connected through U.S. Route 40 and State Highway 139, according to Wikipedia. Colorado State Patrol said the crash investigation remains ongoing, per Denver7's reporting.
Investigators have not determined why the victim was sitting in the roadway, nor have they determined the cause of the crash at this time, Colorado State Patrol told the station. The stretch of Highway 139 where the crash occurred, near milepost 1 south of Loma, is part of a 72-mile remote rural highway running through the Book Cliffs and Douglas Pass with no major towns along its entire corridor, offering an isolated, poorly lit connection between Loma and Rangely, per Wikipedia's entry on the route.
What the Charges Carry Under Colorado Law
Under Colorado Revised Statutes § 42-4-1601, leaving the scene of an accident that results in death is a Class 3 felony carrying 4 to 12 years in state prison, mandatory driver's license revocation, and fines up to $750,000, according to Justia Law. Under a separate statute, C.R.S. § 18-8-105, a person commits felony accessory if they actively render assistance — such as harboring a suspect, providing transportation, or concealing evidence — with the specific intent to hinder law enforcement's apprehension of an offender, Justia Law's summary explains, noting that Colorado courts require active concealment or assistance rather than mere silence to sustain that charge.
A Statewide Pattern of Pedestrian Deaths
The crash adds to a troubling statewide trend. Pedestrian fatalities across Colorado reached 127 in 2025, a 98% increase over ten years and nearly one-fifth of all traffic deaths statewide, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation. The agency also reports that about 65% of pedestrian fatalities in the state occur during dark or low-light conditions, while national highway data cited by CDOT show roughly 24% of fatal pedestrian crashes involve hit-and-run drivers. Statewide, Colorado logged 698 fatal crashes and nearly 100,000 total motor vehicle collisions in 2025, per data compiled by CGH Injury Lawyers.
For now, the identity of the man killed south of Loma remains unreleased, and investigators have not said what he was doing in the roadway before the SUV struck him. Colorado State Patrol has confirmed only that the case remains open as MacKinnon and Vogt await extradition to Mesa County.
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