A 56-year-old Spicer woman is facing a felony charge after a Halloween night crash at a rural Kandiyohi County intersection left a passenger with life-threatening injuries. Traci Lorayne Dengerud is charged with criminal vehicular operation causing great bodily harm with an alcohol concentration of 0.08 or more, according to the criminal complaint.
The crash happened at 8:23 p.m. on Oct. 31 at the intersection of Minnesota Highway 23 and Kandiyohi County Road 31 in New London Township, according to West Central Tribune. A 2026 Hyundai Sonata driven south on Highway 23 by Aden Jelle Kassim, 26, of Willmar, collided with a 2019 Lincoln Nautilus driven east on County Road 31 by Dengerud, of Spicer, the paper reported, citing a Minnesota State Patrol report. The newspaper's report said four people were injured overall and that alcohol was believed to be a factor.
Beyond the felony count, Dengerud also faces one count of third-degree driving while impaired and two gross-misdemeanor counts of criminal vehicular operation causing bodily harm, according to the complaint detailed by mn crime. The outlet reported that a state patrol trooper arrived at the crash around 8:23 p.m. and found Dengerud's SUV with severe damage to its front driver's side, while the sedan had severe front-end damage and was sitting in the highway's outside lane.
Passenger Suffered Life-Threatening Injuries
The sedan's passenger, a woman, sustained life-threatening internal injuries in the crash, the complaint states, per the same mncrime.com account. That report says she was taken to a Saint Cloud hospital in critical condition. The West Central Tribune's earlier account, however, identified the critically injured passenger as Hasilo Ann Ibrahim, 56, of Willmar, and reported she was transported to CentraCare — Rice Memorial Hospital in Willmar; the two accounts diverge on the hospital destination.
The sedan's driver told the trooper he had been traveling about 65 mph and that both occupants were wearing seat belts, according to the complaint. The West Central Tribune's reporting on the State Patrol account similarly noted that all passengers and drivers were belted at the time of the crash, though it described road conditions as dry — a detail that conflicts with the complaint's account, discussed below.
Conflicting Accounts Of Weather At The Scene
According to the complaint, the crash scene was very foggy with light rain, and Dengerud told the trooper she was driving to a friend's house and did not see other vehicles in the fog before crossing the intersection. The West Central Tribune's report on the State Patrol's findings, by contrast, states that road conditions at the time of the crash were dry. The two sourced accounts were not reconciled as of publication.
Dengerud also told the trooper she had three mixed vodka and 7up drinks at the Legion in New London before the crash, according to the complaint. She performed poorly on field sobriety tests, and a preliminary breath test showed a 0.18 reading, the complaint states. She was arrested after the crash, and a blood sample was sent to the state crime lab for testing under a search warrant.
Judge Ordered Dengerud Held
A judge ordered Dengerud detained when the complaint was filed, according to mncrime.com's report. The outlet's account states the complaint was filed Nov. 3.
Criminal vehicular operation causing great bodily harm carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, a $10,000 fine, or both, according to Minnesota Statutes. That figure reflects the statutory maximum penalty under state law and is not a prediction of any outcome in Dengerud's case. mncrime.com first reported on the crash on Nov. 1, and WJON placed the incident at approximately 8:30 p.m. at the same County Road 31 and Highway 23 intersection, closely matching the more precise time cited elsewhere.
