Teenager dead, man arrested in Chef Menteur Highway crash

Disclaimer: All persons are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

NEW ORLEANS ( WGNO ) — The New Orleans Police Department is investigating a crash in New Orleans East that left a teenager dead and a man arrested.

The crash reportedly happened at the corner of Chef Menteur Highway and Chantilly Drive, around 8 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 29.

An investigation revealed that 24-year-old Sani Alvarez Lopez was allegedly speeding westbound on Chef Menteur Highway in a Ford Fusion when he reportedly clipped the back of a Nissan Maxima.

Officers said this caused Lopez to veer off the road, striking a tree and a telephone pole before flipping over at the corner of Chef Menteur Highway and Chantilly Drive.

No injuries were reported from the Nissan but Alvarez and a 15-year-old girl in the Ford were taken to a hospital by EMS. The teen was pronounced dead while Lopez suffered minor injuries.

On Monday, Sept. 30, Lopez was released from the hospital and now faces a charge of battery of a police officer after a fight with police during the crash investigation.

The Orleans Parish Coroner’s Office will release the teenager’s identity after an autopsy is done and the family is notified.

Anyone with information on the crash can call the NOPD Traffic Division Fatality Investigators at 504-658-6210.

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