Rohnert Park Man Pleads No Contest to Hit-and-Run Collision

A Rohnert Park man pleaded no contest Monday to all charges in a hit-and-run collision that injured a professional bicyclist in June.

Arthur Yu, 36, of Rohnert Park, faces 10 years and four months in prison when he is sentenced Nov. 27 for hit-and-run, vehicle theft, possession of a stolen vehicle and reckless driving, Sonoma County District Attorney Jill Ravitch said.

Yu was driving a 1996 Honda north on Pine Flat Road in unincorporated Sonoma County northeast of Healdsburg at 15 to 20 mph when the collision occurred at about 12:30 p.m. on June 29, the California Highway Patrol said.

Yu cut the corner on a right curve in the road and drove into the path of Michael Torckler's Pinarello bicycle, CHP officials said.

Torckler, 25, of New Zealand was ejected from the bicycle, struck the Honda's windshield and fell onto the pavement, according to CHP.

Yu stopped briefly as his passenger William Frasier got out of the car to check on Torckler, then drove away leaving Frasier at the scene, Ravitch said. He was arrested the next day.

Torckler, who races for the Bissell Pro Cycling team based in Santa Rosa, suffered wounds, including fractures to his face and was hospitalized for 12 days, Ravitch said.

Yu's father reported the Honda was stolen a week before the collision. It was found three weeks after the collision on a Rohnert Park street.

-- Bay City News