A driver who fatally struck three Girl Scouts and a mother along a Wisconsin highway fought his roommate for control of his black Ford F-150 pickup truck just before crashing into five people, according to a criminal complaint.
Colten Ray Treu, 21, of Chippewa Falls, told authorities that he and his roommate, John Stender Jr., had been “huffing” computer keyboard cleaner to get high prior to Saturday’s crash along a rural highway in Lake Hallie, according to the complaint obtained by the Eau Claire Leader-Telegram.
Treu said he took two short huffs from a can of Dustoff, while Stender took several more pulls. Treu claimed he “lost control of the vehicle and fishtailed after Mr. Stender grabbed the steering wheel from him,” according to the complaint.
Stender told police he took the steering to correct Treu’s driving. That prompted Treu to yell at him and violently grab the wheel back, causing the truck to swerve wildly into the ditch and hit the victims, according to the complaint.
“Mr. Stender stated the next thing he recalled is waking up down the road,” according to the criminal complaint.
Treu didn’t stop after the crash that killed four people and seriously injured a fifth among a group of five adults and seven children from Girl Scout Troop 3055, the newspaper reports.
Police have identified the victims as Jayna S. Kelley, 9, and Autum A. Helgeson, 10, both of Lake Hallie, as well as Haylee J. Hickle, 10, and her 32-year-old mother, Sara Jo Schneider, both of Lafayette. They were picking up trash along the highway and wearing reflective vests as part of an “Adopt-A-Highway” group when they were cut down.
A 10-year-old girl identified as Madalyn Zwiefelhofer remains hospitalized at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, where she’s being treated for severe injuries, including an aortic rupture and acute respiratory failure, the Star Tribune reports.
“Madalyn will get through this,” a GoFundMe page created to help offset medical costs reads. “She’s still battling and is in stable condition in the ICU.”
True’s truck was tracked by authorities by a “fresh fluid trail” that led them nearly 2 miles from the crash scene to an apartment shared by Stender and Treu. The truck had “significant front-end damage, with weeds observed stuck in the front bumper,” according to the criminal complaint.
True and Stender were not at home when officers arrived. Treu surrendered to authorities hours later, police said.
Colton TreuAPStender has not been charged. Chippewa County District Attorney Wade Newell could not be reached for comment on whether charges against him are pending, the Leader-Telegram reports.
Treu, who remains jailed on $250,000 bail, is facing a maximum sentence of more than 281 years in prison if convicted on 11 criminal counts, including four counts of homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle, the Star Tribune reports.
Treu is also facing one count of felony bail jumping after being released from custody in Rusk County on Oct. 2 in connection with methamphetamine possession, according to the newspaper.
Funeral services for Schneider, Haylee and Autum will be held Thursday in Chippewa Falls. A funeral for Jayna will be held Friday.
Schneider’s mother, Judy, told the AP she wondered in the aftermath of the deadly crash what the driver was thinking.
“And my first thought was, ‘Let’s just prosecute the hell out of him,’” Judy Schneider said. “And then what? Do they come back? And now that I hear his history, I understand addiction. But I just don’t know how the hatred and anger is going to help at this point.”



