Friday night pursuit leaves two dead in Monett
June 28, 2023
Adriana Keeton
According to a probable cause statement issued by Missouri State Highway Patrol Trooper T. Royster, on Friday, June 23, at approximately 10:02 p.m., Royster was dispatched to assist the Lawrence County Sheriff's Office with a vehicle pursuit southbound on Farm Road 1070 near US Hwy. 60. The vehicle pursuit ended at the intersection of State Hwy. 37 and US Hwy 60, in Monett at approximately 10:13 p.m., when a 2006 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, driven by Rafael Contreras-Maldonado, 19, of Monett, ran a red light and struck a 2013 Hyundai Elantra in the intersection, causing the death of two occupants in the vehicle. Larry Brock, 53, and Lydia Shorey, 61, both of Crane, were pronounced dead at the scene by Barry County Coroner Gary Swearingen just after midnight on June 24 and were taken to Fohn Funeral Home in Cassville.
Contreras-Maldonado was taken into custody and remains in Barry County Jail awaiting a bond hearing set for June 29 at 10 a.m. Maldonado-Contreras has been charged with three felonies, including DWI-Death of two or more, possession of a controlled substance, resisting/interfering with arrest, two misdemeanors and three other infractions.
According to a probable cause statement issued by Missouri State Highway Patrol Trooper T. Royster, on Friday, June 23, at approximately 10:02 p.m., Royster was dispatched to assist the Lawrence County Sheriff's Office with a vehicle pursuit southbound on Farm Road 1070 near US Hwy. 60. The vehicle pursuit ended at the intersection of State Hwy. 37 and US Hwy 60, in Monett at approximately 10:13 p.m., when a 2006 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, driven by Rafael Contreras-Maldonado, 19, of Monett, ran a red light and struck a 2013 Hyundai Elantra in the intersection, causing the death of two occupants in the vehicle. Larry Brock, 53, and Lydia Shorey, 61, both of Crane, were pronounced dead at the scene by Barry County Coroner Gary Swearingen just after midnight on June 24 and were taken to Fohn Funeral Home in Cassville.
Contreras-Maldonado was taken into custody and remains in Barry County Jail awaiting a bond hearing set for June 29 at 10 a.m. Maldonado-Contreras has been charged with three felonies, including DWI-Death of two or more, possession of a controlled substance, resisting/interfering with arrest, two misdemeanors and three other infractions.
