FAYETTEVILLE -- A Springdale man pleaded guilty to manslaughter Friday in Washington County Circuit Court and was sentenced to prison.
Nestor Ariel Zuniga, 22, of 1501 Kirsten Drive in Springdale, was sentenced to 10 years at the Arkansas Department of Correction with eight years suspended, according to Whitney Doolittle, deputy prosecutor.
The manslaughter charge stemmed from Zuniga recklessly causing the death of another person, according to court documents.
According to a Springdale Police Department preliminary report, officers were dispatched to a call of a reckless driver on Sunset Avenue at about 11:59 a.m. Nov. 6, 2022. Police received multiple calls regarding a red SUV being driven at approximately 100 mph, dangerously passing cars and almost causing several crashes, according to the report.
Police then received another call saying the red SUV had hit another vehicle. The caller said the driver of the other vehicle had severe injuries and an unconscious passenger. They also said the driver of the red SUV had fled on foot.
When officers arrived at the crash scene at Sunset Avenue and Jones Road, the victim vehicle had three passengers including a 16-year-old male who was in the back seat who was not breathing. He was transported to a local hospital but was later pronounced dead.
Zuniga, the driver of the red SUV, was located in a large field south of the accident site and apprehended. Zuniga was treated for injuries at a local hospital before being taken to jail.
According to an Arkansas State Police fatal crash summary, Zuniga was driving a 2020 Hyundai west on Sunset when he sideswiped a 2005 Chevrolet, causing Zuniga to then rear-end a 2002 Toyota, which left the road and struck a utility pole. The deceased juvenile was a passenger in the Toyota, according to the summary.
Conditions were clear and the road was dry at the time of the crash.