region-news

Please update your Flash Player to view content.
Press "Play" to hear the latest news from THE REGION.


Region-News-Team-Black-Logo

Developing News: Morning I-94 Crash

As police investigators try to find a link to today's early morning head-on crash on I-94 near the Indiana/Michigan state line and a homicide claiming the lives of one of the victim's families, A TV Station in Detroit is reporting that the driver who caused the crash, identified as 38-year-old Micheal Vanderlinden of Belleville Michigan, had attempted suicide and had a prior history of mental illness.   According to WDIV-TV, police discovered the deaths of Vanderlinden's wife and their two young sons at the family's Belleville home after officers attempted to contact the next of kin to notify them of the fatal crash, police noted the front door of the home was open when they arrived.  WBBM-TV is reporting that a former neighbor says Vanderlinden and his wife were recently distraught due to a job position that did not work out for Michael Vanderlinden.   Indiana State Police believe Vanderlinden may have pulled out of a rest stop just west of the 900-north overpass in LaPorte county going the wrong way, when his vehicle crashed head-on into a vehicle driven by 45-year-old Juan Nelson Jr. of Portage, Indiana in the center lane.   Police say the impact ignited a fire that engulfed both cars,  killing both drivers and leaving the victims and vehicles burned beyond recognition.