ST. CHARLES COUNTY, Mo. — Two men are facing charges after a road rage incident on northbound Highway 61 at Route W killed a woman.
Joseph Faupel, 63, of Troy attempted to pass Daniel Glennon Loeffler, 35, of St. Peters, in a turn lane on Highway 61 at Route W. Loeffler sped up so Faupel could not pass his vehicle, causing Faupel to veer hard to the left and strike Loeffler's car, the prosecuting office said. The impact pushed Loeffler's car to the left, striking another car that was also traveling northbound in the next lane.
“Several witnesses who were driving in or near where the incident happened said it appeared that both individuals were mutually engaged in some sort of road rage incident. It’s still under investigation,“ St. Charles County Prosecuting Attorney Tim Lohmar said.
Roy Cottner, 70, of Moscow Mills, Missouri, was the driver of the third vehicle. As a result of the impact, Cottner's vehicle traveled off the highway, hit a telephone pole and flipped several times, causing Cottner serious injuries and killing his passenger, Patricia Cottner, 69, also of Moscow Mills.
Both victims were taken to a St. Louis hospital, where Brummel was pronounced dead.
Roy Cottner was treated and released from the hospital Thursday evening.
The crash report identified the woman killed in the crash as Patricia Brummel, but family members said she had changed her name to Patricia Cottner but had not updated her driver's license.
Family members say Patricia Cottner was a beloved mom, wife and great-grandmother. She was a retired secretary.
Faupel and Loeffler have been charged with first-degree involuntary manslaughter and second-degree assault.
“Both of them had plenty of chances to exit from this and they didn’t do that," Lohmar said. "I think the lesson is you now we’ve all been in a situation before where somebody’s done something on the road that ticked you off. You got to let it go.”
Faupel is being held at St. Charles County Department of Corrections on a $50,000 cash-only bond. Loeffler, whose bond was also set at $50,000, was released after posting bail.