New Jersey man killed in LaGrange County crash

LAGRANGE COUNTY, Ind.—A New Jersey man was killed in a crash on the Indiana Toll Road on Thursday, according to Indiana State Police.

Around 8:45 p.m. on Thursday, Indiana State Police troopers were called to a crash involving two commercial vehicles on I-90 near the 116 mile marker.

At the scene, troopers found that an orange Freightliner straight truck had crashed into the rear of a white Freightliner semi-truck in the westbound lanes of the Toll Road, according to police.

The driver of the straight truck, David Sabanadze, 40 of Elmwood Parks, New Jersey, was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Indiana State Police.

The driver of the semi-truck did not appear injured but was taken to the hospital to be evaluated, police said.

Preliminary crash investigation findings show that at the time of the crash, there was a traffic backup in the westbound lanes due to a lane closure at the 114 mile marker.

Witnesses told police that the straight truck did not use its brakes prior to striking the semi-truck and there were no skid marks located at the scene of the crash, according to state police.

Sabanadze was not wearing a seatbelt, police said.

Police noted unsafe speed and following too closely as contributing factors to the crash but said it’s unknown at this time if there was a medical episode or impairment that contributed to the crash.

The crash remains under investigation.