hit-and-rush accident in Oak Harbor on June 5 claimed the life of a 20-year-old woman.
Police identified the victim as Anna N. Albert. She was a student at Whatcom Community College and was on her way to visit her mother, who works at Crescent Harbor Elementary, according to the coroner’s office.
The man accused of causing the crash, 33-year-old Travis R. Loetterle, ran from the scene and hid in the woods, but turned himself into police about 12 hours later, according to court documents.
Albert is the sixth person to die in a traffic accident on Whidbey in the last nine weeks. The crash is also the third alleged fatal hit-and-run crash on the island in that time. It’s an unprecedented number in such a timespan, according to police.
Loetterle appeared in Island County Superior Court Thursday. Judge Christon Skinner found probable cause existed to believe he may have committed the crimes of vehicular homicide and “hit and run from an accident resulting in death.”
Deputy Prosecutor David Carman requested that Loetterle be held on $250,000 bail, pointing out that the defendant has extensive criminal history involving vehicle-related charges and other crimes. The crash was the third collision Loetterle was involved in during the last eight months.
