(KSNF/KODE) — New information was released Tuesday about a fatal hit-and-run crash that killed a Galena man last year.
Kansas investigators say they have video and GPS data that places John Joseph, a dentist from Joplin, Missouri, at the scene of the fatal crash about 40 minutes after it happened.
John and his son, Rocco, were both charged with leaving the scene of the crash that killed Gary LaTurner, 60, on Aug. 19, 2023. LaTurner’s body was found the next day in a ditch along the eastbound lanes of West 7th Street near Sterling Manufacturing Company, just west of the Galena city limits.
Court records state that video obtained from Sterling Manufacturing shows the moment of impact at 11:24 p.m. when officials say Rocco’s truck hits LaTurner. The probable cause affidavit also says that the same video shows John’s truck returning to the scene just after midnight at 12:06 a.m., slowing down, passing LaTurner’s backpack and debris in the road, turning around, and going back to the point of impact on the shoulder of the road. With headlights illuminating LaTurner’s body, the affidavit says John’s truck then drove away at 12:12 a.m.
Kansas Highway Patrol investigators say they obtained cell phone data from both John and Rocco, which places them in the doctor’s truck at the same time the two are seen on video at the same location where LaTurner’s body was found.
Additional information in the affidavits reveals a phone call Rocco made to his father after the impact. Investigators say during the initial interview with Rocco and his attorney, Rocco gave investigators permission to get data from his phone and vehicle. Investigators say they discovered that Rocco drove to the Casey’s Convenience Store at 32nd and Schifferdecker. From that information, investigators say they got a security video from Casey’s that shows John and his son examining the damage.
Court records say John’s truck can be seen on that video. Rocco’s phone data then shows it heading back to the scene. After seeing the truck in the video, which appears to be the same as John’s, KHP then obtained cell phone data from John. They say his phone data puts the doctor within feet of his son’s phone as it returned to the area where LaTurner’s body was discovered.
According to the affidavit filed in John’s criminal case, the KHP investigator says neither Rocco nor the doctor called authorities to report the crash, even though they both had the means to do so. It also says that John allowed his son to “once again leave the scene of the collision” without contacting police or rendering aid to LaTurner.
Both John and Rocco were scheduled for a first appearance in Cherokee County Court on Monday, but their hearings were continued until the end of October.
No attorney has entered an appearance for John in the criminal case. In September, when he was charged, Joplin attorney Phil Glades released a statement saying John was his client and that he looked forward to receiving the “proof” provided by law enforcement officials.
KSNF has reached out to Glades to verify continued representation and comment about the information provided in the affidavits filed with the court.
