Teen Arrested After Hitting 2 Vehicles, Killing 1 Passenger

PHOENIX, AZ – Nineteen-year-old Dakota Austin Behan was arrested Thurs., Sept. 19 in connection with a Phoenix vehicular speeding incident last week that left two cars damaged, one passenger seriously injured and another passenger dead. The incident occurred Sept. 12 around 7:40 p.m. when then-18-year-old Behan drove a 2004 Kia Optima “at a high rate of speed,” according to a police report.

Behan and his two passengers were headed north on 32nd Street when Behan chose not to stop at a red light at the intersection of 32nd Street and Union Hills Drive. Consequently, the Kia struck a 2006 Ford F-150 truck driven by a southbound 51-year-old male attempting to turn left onto Union Hills Drive. After the collision, the Kia continued to move and struck a westbound 2010 Ford F150 truck driven by a 32-year-old male preparing to turn right from Union Hills Drive onto N. 32nd Street.

A police report indicates that the two pickup trucks’ drivers were possibly but not seriously injured. Behan and his 16-year-old male passenger sustained serious but not life-threatening injuries. However, Behan’s 17-year-old female passenger, Anika Zibell, was pronounced dead after being taken to a local hospital.

Behan was booked Thursday into the Maricopa County Jail and now faces a charge of endangerment in the case of his 16-year-old passenger. He was also charged with manslaughter for Anika Zibell’s death.