On September 25, 2025, at approximately 8:52 A.M., officers were dispatched to a motor vehicle accident with injuries at the intersection of Highway 28 and Highway 71 in the City of Sauk Centre, County of Stearns, State of Minnesota. Upon arrival, officers became aware that a male driving a motor cycle was struck from behind at the stop sign and later passed away from the injuries. This male, T. T., is fully identified in the police reports. Another male driving a pickup and flatbed trailer, D. M. K. J., fully identified in the reports, had been stopped at the stop sign in front of the motorcycle and also was struck from behind.
A box truck was observed in a parking lot east of the intersection against a pole with front end damage. This vehicle was driven by Ramon Jesus Garcia Rangel, [DOB REDACTED], the defendant herein. Officers spoke with D. M. K. J. He said he was waiting for traffic to clear before making his left turn. He said he looked in his mirror and observed the defendant coming and it did not appear he was slowing down. He said he tried to hurry up to get out of the way. He knew the motorcycle was behind him but he did not see the motorcycle get hit prior to the truck striking him.
In a statement to officers, the defendant stated he was traveling from Morris, Minnesota, to St. Paul Minnesota. He said he was traveling east on Highway 28 and needed to turn left on Highway 71. The defendant said he has traveled this road in the past. The defendant said he did not see the stop sign. The defendant admitted he was traveling approximately 60-62 mph at the time of the crash. He said he was listening to music but only had one ear bud in. He said he realized he was going to collide with the vehicles in front of him but it was too late.
Minnesota State Trooper Monson completed a crash reconstruction. Highway 28 enters Sauk Centre from the west and has a stop sign at the intersection with Highway 71. Highway 28 also has a yellow caution stop ahead sign prior to the intersection. Highway 71 runs north and south at this intersection and does not have a stop sign in either direction. Directly across the intersection from Highway 28 is a street that enters an industrial area with a parking lot on the left and a parking lot and building on the right.
Trooper Monson confirmed that D. M. K. J. Was facing east stopped at the stop sign on Highway 28 preparing to turn north on Highway 71. T. T. Was also stopped and directly behind D. M. K. J. The defendant approached the stop sign from the west behind D. M. K. J. And T. T., and failed to stop for the stop sign. The defendant struck T. T., and then D. M. K. J.'s trailer, with his vehicle ending in the parking lot of Felling Trailers. Trooper Monson obtained the vehicle data from the defendant's vehicle, a 2025 Freightliner box truck.
