A 49-year-old man is facing charges in connection to the death of a teenager acting as a Good Samaritan during a crash in July 2024 on Interstate 35 in Merriam.

Around 2 a.m. on July 27, 2024, Benjamin D. Van Buskirk, 17, was a passenger in a car that pulled over to help a stranded motorist in the southbound lanes of I-35 near Johnson Drive.

As Benjamin was helping the stranded motorist, the driver of a Jeep Liberty crashed into the stranded car that Benjamin was assisting.

Benjamin died from his injuries. The stranded motorist suffered serious injuries in the crash.

The driver of the Jeep, identified as Matthew Thomas Bray, was charged on Aug. 13, 2025, with aggravated battery while driving under the influence and leaving the scene of an injury crash, both felonies.

Bray was taken in

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