CHIPPEWA COUNTY, Minn. — A New York City man has been charged with criminal vehicular homicide and reckless driving after he admitted to using an iPad while driving through a stop sign, causing a fiery crash that killed a truck driver.
According to court documents, Georgii Gabiev, 32, told law enforcement that at the time of the crash “he was listening to a program on an iPad that was teaching him how to speak English. … He claimed to not have been looking at the iPad when he was driving.”
Truck driver Timmy J. Tarnowski, 59, of Pelican Rapids, Minnesota, died in the March 5 crash.
According to police reports, Tarnowski was heading east on Highway 7 pulling a grain trailer full of sunflower seeds when Gabiev failed to obey a stop sign while heading north on County Road 4 and hit his rig.
“Tim pursued a career that took him on the highways, logging an impressive 4.5 million miles as a trucker,” according to his online obituary. “He worked for STS Trucking for several years and since 2014 owned and operated his own trucking business.
“Tim took great pride in his truck, Max, and his unparalleled skill in navigating a 53-foot trailer through intricate spaces.”
Gabiev remains in custody in lieu of $100,000 bail ahead of a court appearance on March 25.
Born in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, and raised in East Texas, John Worthen returned to his home state to attend college in 1998 and decided to make his life in The Natural State. Worthen is a 20-year veteran of the journalism industry and has covered just about every topic there is. He has a passion for writing and telling stories. He has worked as a beat reporter and bureau chief for a statewide newspaper and as managing editor of a regional newspaper in Arkansas. Additionally, Worthen has been a prolific freelance journalist for two decades, and has been published in several travel magazines and on travel websites.
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