Rochester Crash That Took Young Woman’s Life Sends Man to Prison

Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News)- A Rochester man was sentenced Monday for causing a traffic crash that claimed the life of a young woman last year. 

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In September, 21-year-old Deng Kwel entered a guilty plea to a charge of criminal vehicular homicide for causing a high-speed traffic crash that claimed the life of 22-year-old Cynthia Gomez. 

An Olmsted County judge sentenced Kwel to four years in prison. He's been ordered to serve the prison term at the state correctional facility in St. Cloud.

Documents in the case say Gomez was driving north on East Circle Drive on the afternoon of April 11, 2022, when a car driven by Kwel slid out of control through the median and smashed into her minivan near the entrance to Quarry Hill Park.

The criminal complaint cited an accident reconstruction report that estimated Kwel was speeding at almost 90 mph just before the deadly crash.

The criminal complaint also includes statements from multiple witnesses who reported Kwel was driving at a high rate of speed and weaving in and out of traffic just before his car went through the median, collided with the young woman's minivan, and then rolled several times. 

A video from a dash cam in one of the witness's vehicles shows Kwel's car was partially airborne when it smashed into the other vehicle.