Oregon State Police Detective finds Injury Crash With Ejected Child Near Albany

Troopers are investigating to determine if she was in the child safety seat when the car was being driven at the time of the crash.

Photo courtesy: Oregon State Police

(ALBANY) - The father of a two-year old child ejected during a rollover crash is being cited on numerous charges following a late night traffic crash along Interstate 5 at the Highway 20 southbound off ramp. The crash was discovered early Monday morning at 6:40 AM by an Oregon State Police Lottery Division detective as he drove by the area.

OSP Detective Frank Hagen was taking the southbound off ramp from Interstate 5 at Highway 20 in Albany when he spotted a crashed vehicle. Upon checking the scene, Detective Hagen found a two-year old girl about 40 feet from the wrecked car. Inside the car was a seriously injured adult male driver. Medical personnel and OSP troopers were dispatched to the scene immediately following the discovery.

Preliminary investigation indicates sometime late Sunday night or early Monday morning, the 1996 Ford Contour four-door driven by 23-year old Jorge Villa-Rubio of northeast Salem, was southbound on Interstate 5 at a high rate of speed when it attempted to take the exit to Highway 20. The Ford failed to negotiate the sharp right turn, went off the road and rolled until it came to rest in an area not clearly visible during darkness.

Villa-Rubio was seriously injured and transported to Albany General Hospital where he is currently in intensive care. He is being cited to appear in Linn County Circuit Court to face charges of DUII, Assault in the Second Degree, Recklessly Endangering Another Person, Reckless Driving, Driving While Suspended

His two-year old daughter, Esmaralda Villa-Ulloa was ejected out one of the windows and was found about 40 feet from the vehicle. Troopers are investigating to determine if she was in the child safety seat when the car was being driven at the time of the crash. The child was transported by air ambulance to Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center in Corvallis with non-life threatening injuries.

Oregon State Police troopers from the Albany Area Command office, with the assistance of an OSP crash reconstructionist and members of the Multi-agency Investigation Traffic Team, are continuing the investigation. The time of the crash is undetermined.

ODOT and Albany Fire Department also assisted at the scene. The Highway 20 offramp was closed during the on-scene investigation.