By NBC News staff
A 16-year-old Louisiana boy driving a tractor-trailer hit and killed two Texas women who were changing a tire on Interstate 70 near Limon, Colo., at about 6:30 a.m. Saturday, The Associated Press reported.
Tristan Martin, of Sulphur, La., was driving a 2003 Volvo tractor-trailer that was pulling a trailer full of horses. The boy was en route to Wyoming with his father to compete in a rodeo, The Denver Post reported.
According to the AP, the boy's father, Michael Martin, 37, initially told the Colorado State Patrol he had been the driver.
The victims, Shun Jones, 48, of Carrollton, Texas, and her cousin, Amanda Omo-Iyamu, 38, of Balch Springs, Texas, were in Colorado to visit family, Jones' son Quincy Jones told The Denver Post.
"My mom was trying to get my family to bond back together like they used to be," he said.
9news.com
The teen's father, Michael Martin, 37, initially told the Colorado State Patrol he had been the driver.
The teen left before troopers arrived, the AP reported, and was charged with two felony counts of leaving the scene of a deadly accident, and one misdemeanor count of careless driving causing death. His father faces one misdemeanor count of false reporting.
The Martins have been released on bail, The Post reported, $500 for the father and $100,000 for the son, according to Capt. Clint Tweden of the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office.
The Martins were driving to Rock Springs, Wyo., to compete in the National High School Finals Rodeo, Lydia Martin, Tristan's aunt told the newspaper.
"We are praying for that family, and we are truly sorry. It is a disaster, a nightmare, and our hearts go out to them," Lydia Martin said.
Martin told The Post that Tristan had a Louisiana personal driver's license, adding that driving a single-axle truck pulling a large horse trailer doesn't require a commercial driver's license.
"[The truck] can be classified as a farm vehicle," she told The Post.
Colorado authorities told WFAA.com they are investigating whether the teen was breaking the law.
?We are investigating whether he was complying with federal guidelines,? Colorado State Patrol Sgt. Mike Baker told WFAA.com.
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